Article Title

Mechanical properties of freely suspended atomically thin dielectric layers of mica

Authors

Andres Castellanos-Gomez, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, Lorentzweg 1, 2628 CJ Delft, The Netherlands Departamento de Física de la Materia Condensada, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Campus de Cantoblanco, E-28049 Madrid, Spain
Menno Poot, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, Lorentzweg 1, 2628 CJ Delft, The Netherlands Department of Engineering Science, Yale University, Becton 215, 15 Prospect St., New Haven, CT 06520, USA
Albert Amor-Amorós, Departamento de Física de la Materia Condensada, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Campus de Cantoblanco, E-28049 Madrid, Spain
Gary A. Steele, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, Lorentzweg 1, 2628 CJ Delft, The Netherlands
Herre S.J. van der Zant, Kavli Institute of Nanoscience, Delft University of Technology, Lorentzweg 1, 2628 CJ Delft, The Netherlands
Nicolás Agrat, Departamento de Física de la Materia Condensada, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Campus de Cantoblanco, E-28049 Madrid, Spain Instituto Madrileo de Estudios Avanzados en Nanociencia IMDEA-Nanociencia, E-28049 Madrid, Spain
Gabino Rubio-Bollinger, Departamento de Física de la Materia Condensada, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Campus de Cantoblanco, E-28049 Madrid, Spain

Keywords

Mica nanosheets, freely suspended, mechanical properties, atomically thin crystal, mechanical exfoliation

Abstract

ABSTRACT We have studied the elastic deformation of freely suspended atomically thin sheets of muscovite mica, a widely used electrical insulator in its bulk form. Using an atomic force microscope, we carried out bending test experiments to determine the Young’s modulus and the initial pre-tension of mica nanosheets with thicknesses ranging from 14 layers down to just one bilayer. We found that their Young’s modulus is high (190 GPa), in agreement with the bulk value, which indicates that the exfoliation procedure employed to fabricate these nanolayers does not introduce a noticeable amount of defects. Additionally, ultrathin mica shows low pre-strain and can withstand reversible deformations up to tens of nanometers without breaking. The low pre-tension and high Young’s modulus and breaking force found in these ultrathin mica layers demonstrates their prospective use as a complement for graphene in applications requiring flexible insulating materials or as reinforcement in nanocomposites.

Graphical Abstract

DOI

https://doi.org/10.1007/s12274-012-0240-3

Publisher

Tsinghua University Press

Recommended Citation

Andres Castellanos-Gomez,Menno Poot,Albert Amor-Amorós,Gary A. Steele,Herre S. J. van der Zant,Nicolás Agraït,Gabino Rubio-Bollinger, Mechanical properties of freely suspended atomically thin dielectric layers of mica. NanoRes.2012, 5(8): 550–557