Torsional properties of metallic nanosprings

Based on molecular mechanics and the embedded-atom potential, the torsional mechanical behaviors of metallic copper nanosprings are investigated in this paper. The torsion coefficient of the nanospring is obtained by fitting the curve of potential energy versus torsion angle according to a parabolic law. It is found that the geometry of nanospring has a strong inuence on the torsion coefficient. With the increase of the wire radius and the helix radius, the torsion coefficient of the nanospring increases. However, it decreases with the increase of the helix pitch and turns. It is also found that the classic spring theory is invalid to torsional nanosprings. The calculated torsion coefficient is higher than the predication from the classic spring theory and is lower than that of the corresponding solid rod. In addition, the continuum mechanics is shown to be inapplicable to describe the torsional behavior of nanosprings. These findings might provide a better understanding of the usability and functionality of nanosprings in nanodevices.