Influence of Force Acting on Side Face of Carbon Nanotube in Atomic Force Microscopy

Abstract

We have examined the nanomechanics of a carbon nanotube by a manipulation technique using a scanning electron microscope. Young's modulus of the nanotube, estimated from the buckling under force acting on the axial direction of the nanotube, agrees well with the value estimated from the bending under force acting on the side face. This indicates that the nanotube can be treated as an isotropic material in conventional mechanics. The adhesion force between the side face of the nanotube and a pit wall in a 4.7 GB digital versatile disk is estimated to be ∼10 nN using atomic force microscopy. This value is 160 times less than the value estimated using force curve measurement. This discrepancy is due to the finding that the value estimated from the force curve includes not only the adhesion but also the friction force.