Mechanical Characterization of III-V Nanowire Using Molecular Dynamics Simulation

Mechanical stiffness and density of III-V (GaAs) nanowire (NW) are studied by atomistic simulation in the <111>, <110> and <100> directions. Series of molecular models are established and mechanical characteristics of the crystal orientations are considered. The simulation results indicate that the NW exhibits highest structural stiffness in the <111> direction. We also found that GaAs NW exhibits mechanical linearity under 2 GPa stress. Moreover, a qualitative comparison of simulation and other calculated results is carried out, and a good agreement is established.