Structural transformations of carbon nanotubes under hydrostatic pressure.

Tangney, Paul; Capaz, Rodrigo B; Spataru, Catalin D; Cohen, Marvin L; Louie, Steven G · Nano Lett · 2005

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

We used simulations with a classical force field to study the transformation under hydrostatic pressure of isolated single-walled nanotubes (SWNT) from a circular to a collapsed cross section. Small-diameter SWNTs deform continuously under pressure, whereas larger-diameter SWNTs display hysteresis and undergo a first-order-like transformation. The different behavior is due to the changing proportions in the total energy of the wall-curvature energy and the van der Waals attraction between opposite walls of the tube.