Torsional buckling of single-walled carbon nanotubes

Abstract

This paper employs an atomic-scale finite element method to study torsional buckling of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs). As the torsional angle increases, a spiral will appear and the morphology of SWNT will change abruptly. For SWNTs with fixed diameter and those with fixed aspect ratio, the dependence of critical torsional angle on the length is discussed and compared with conventional shell theory, respectively. Strain energy grows initially as a quadratic function of the torsional angle, and then changes approximately linearly. The morphologies of the SWNT are illustrated in detail.