Compression of nanowires using a flat indenter: diametrical elasticity measurement

A new experimental approach for the characterization of the diametrical elastic modulus of individual nanowires is proposed by implementing a micro/nanoscale diametrical compression test geometry, using a flat punch indenter. A 250 nm diameter single crystal silicon nanowire is compressed inside of a scanning electron microscope. Since silicon is highly anisotropic, the wire crystal orientation in the compression axis is determined by electron backscatter diffraction. In order to analyze the load-displacement compression data, a two-dimensional analytical closed-form solution based on a classical contact model is proposed. The results of the analytical model are compared with those of finite element simulations and to the experimental diametrical compression results and show good agreement.