Size-dependent brittle-to-ductile transition in GaAs nano-rods

Size-dependent brittle-to-ductile transition in GaAs nano-rods

GaAs is brittle at room temperature at the macro-scale; however, ductility emerges when its characteristic dimension reduces to the nano-scale. Using molecular dynamics simulations, we reveal that there is a brittle-to-ductile transition in GaAs nano-rods due to the competition between generation of...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Wang, J., Shen, Y., Song, F., Ke, F., Bai, Y., Lu, Chunsheng
Format: Journal Article
Published: Elsevier Ltd 2014
Online Access:http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/23217
Description
Summary:GaAs is brittle at room temperature at the macro-scale; however, ductility emerges when its characteristic dimension reduces to the nano-scale. Using molecular dynamics simulations, we reveal that there is a brittle-to-ductile transition in GaAs nano-rods due to the competition between generation of cracks and initiation of dislocations. Such a competition is sensitive to aspect ratios of nano-rods. These results well explain experimentally observed ductility of GaAs nano-rods and have important implications for the design of semiconductor materials with tailored mechanical properties.

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