Nano Letters 3, 751 - 755 (2003)

Direct Observation of the Mechanical Properties of Singlewall Carbon Nanotubes and their Junctions at the Atomic Level

H.E. Troiani, M. Miki-Yoshida, G.A. Camacho-Bragado, M.A.L. Marques, A. Rubio, J.A. Ascencio, M. Jose Yacamán

Starting from an amorphous C film, single-walled carbon nanotubes were obtained in situ in a high-resolution electron microscope by the combined effect of irradiation and axial strain. Ductile nanotubes developed either a junction or a linear chain of C atoms before failure. These facts have been put in direct evidence for the first time. Tight-binding calculations indicate that the bonding in the linear chain is of a cumulene type.

Additional Information

Download

Preprint - 481.54 KB

Doi

http://dx.doi.org/10.1021/nl0341640

Related Research Areas

• Nanostructures and nanotubes. Nanocapilarity