A single wall carbon nanotube having one or more substituents covalently bonded to a sidewall of the single wall carbon nanotube, wherein the substituents are selected from the group consisting of alkyl, acyl, aryl, aralkyl, halogen, substituted thiol, unsubsutituted thiol, substituted amino, unsubstituted amino, hydroxy, and OR′, wherein R′ is selected from the group consisting of hydrogen, alkyl, acyl, aryl, aralkyl, halogen, substituted thiol, unsubstituted thiol, substituted amino, unsubstituted amino, a linear carbon chain, and a cyclic carbon chain, wherein the substituent is the linear carbon or the cyclic carbon chain or both, wherein the linear carbon chain or the cyclic carbon chain or both is substituted with one or more of the group consisting of ═O, ═S, hydroxy, an aminoalkyl, an amino acid, and a peptide of 2-8 amino acids, and wherein the amount of substituent bonded to carbon atoms of the single wall carbon nanotube is at a substituent to carbon ratio of from (a) one substituent to about 26 carbon atoms to (b) one substituent to about two carbon atoms.