Abstract

We measured the elastic properties and intrinsic breaking strength of free-standing monolayer graphene membranes by nanoindentation in an atomic force microscope. The force-displacement behavior is interpreted within a framework of nonlinear elastic stress-strain response, and yields second- and third-order elastic stiffnesses of 340 newtons per meter (N m –1 ) and –690 Nm –1 , respectively. The breaking strength is 42 N m –1 and represents the intrinsic strength of a defect-free sheet. These quantities correspond to a Young's modulus of E = 1.0 terapascals, third-order elastic stiffness of D = –2.0 terapascals, and intrinsic strength of σ int = 130 gigapascals for bulk graphite. These experiments establish graphene as the strongest material ever measured, and show that atomically perfect nanoscale materials can be mechanically tested to deformations well beyond the linear regime.

Keywords

NanoindentationElastic modulusGrapheneMaterials scienceStiffnessMonolayerLinear elasticityElasticity (physics)Composite materialGraphiteNanomechanicsCondensed matter physicsAtomic force microscopyNanotechnologyPhysicsThermodynamics

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Year
2008
Type
article
Volume
321
Issue
5887
Pages
385-388
Citations
20074
Access
Closed

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Changgu Lee, Xiaoding Wei, Jeffrey W. Kysar et al. (2008). Measurement of the Elastic Properties and Intrinsic Strength of Monolayer Graphene. Science , 321 (5887) , 385-388. https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1157996

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DOI
10.1126/science.1157996