Geometric constant defining shape transitions of carbon nanotubes under pressure

We demonstrate that when a single-walled carbon nanotube is under pressure it undergoes a series of shape transitions, first transforming from a circle to an oval and then from an oval to a peanut. Most remarkably, the ratio of the area of the tube cross sections at the second transition over that a...

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Veröffentlicht in:Physical review letters 2004-03, Vol.92 (10), p.105501-105501, Article 105501
Hauptverfasser: Zang, Ji, Treibergs, Andrejs, Han, Y, Liu, Feng
Format: Artikel
Sprache:eng
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Zusammenfassung:We demonstrate that when a single-walled carbon nanotube is under pressure it undergoes a series of shape transitions, first transforming from a circle to an oval and then from an oval to a peanut. Most remarkably, the ratio of the area of the tube cross sections at the second transition over that at the first transition appears as a constant, independent of the tube radius. Its accurate value is computed to be G=0.819 469, by formulating a variational geometry problem to represent single-walled carbon nanotubes with a family of closed plane curves of fixed length and minimum bending energy. The implications of such a geometric constant in designing nanotube electromechanical pressure sensors are discussed.
ISSN:0031-9007
1079-7114
DOI:10.1103/physrevlett.92.105501