Radial deformation and adhesion of carbon nanotube

The van der Waals (vdW) interactions of carbon nanotube (CNT)-substrate and CNT-CNT can cause strong adhesion. The adhesion can lead to radial deformation of CNTs, which is shown in both experiments and theoretical analysis. A scaling approach is used to predict the mechanical properties, vdW adhesion, and the elastic deformation of CNTs. It is found that the indentation of CNT is proportional to R7/4 and h−3/2 in nanotube-substrate system and two same CNT system. Here, R and h are the radius and the wall thickness of CNT, respectively. The indentation ratio H1/H2 for CNT-CNT is proportional to (R1/R2)3/2 and (h2/h1)3/2.