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Resolving strain in carbon nanotubes at the atomic level

Nature Materials volume 10, pages 958–962 (2011)Cite this article

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Abstract

Details of how atomic structure responds to strain are essential for building a deeper picture of mechanics in nanomaterials. Here, we provide the first experimental evidence of atomic displacements associated with shear strain in single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWNTs) by direct imaging using aberration-corrected transmission electron microscopy. The atomic structure of a zig-zag SWNT is resolved with unprecedented accuracy and the strain induced by bending is mapped in two dimensions. We show the existence of a dominant non-uniform shear strain that varies along the SWNT axis. The direction of shear is opposite to what would be expected from a simple force applied perpendicular to the axis to produce the bending. This highlights the complex atomistic strain behaviour of beam-bending mechanics in highly anisotropic SWNTs.

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Figure 1: Low-voltage AC-HRTEM images of SWNTs.
Figure 2: Obtaining a 2D displacement map of a (28,0) SWNT.
Figure 3: X and Y components of the 2D displacement map and the 2D gradient maps.
Figure 4: Atomic model representations of several relevant key strain types applied to a (28,0) SWNT.

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Acknowledgements

J.H.W. thanks the Royal Society and the Glasstone Fund for support. We thank Meijo Nanocarbon for their generous supply of SWNTs.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Materials, University of Oxford, Parks Rd, Oxford OX1 3PH, UK

    Jamie H. Warner, Neil P. Young, Angus I. Kirkland & G. Andrew D. Briggs

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  1. Jamie H. Warner
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  2. Neil P. Young
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  3. Angus I. Kirkland
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  4. G. Andrew D. Briggs
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Contributions

J.H.W. designed and conducted the experiments, analysed the results and wrote the paper. N.P.Y. and A.I.K. assisted with the HRTEM. G.A.D.B. assisted with the analysis of the results.

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Correspondence to Jamie H. Warner.

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The authors declare no competing financial interests.

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Warner, J., Young, N., Kirkland, A. et al. Resolving strain in carbon nanotubes at the atomic level. Nature Mater 10, 958–962 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1038/nmat3125

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