Effect of the Nanorod Size on Energy Absorption at the Microlevel under Cyclic Loading

Abstract

Molecular dynamics simulations were performed to investigate the effect of the size of the simulated nanoscale system on energy absorption under cyclic loading, as well as on further damage and failure of the system. Two copper nanorods with perfect crystal structure were considered: a base rod measured 50 × 5 × 5 lattice cells and a larger nanorod measured 200 × 20 × 20 cells. It was found that energy absorption is greatly affected by the ratio between the number of atoms simulating the grip and the total number of atoms in the system. Irreversible damage to the crystal structure in the larger system can be seen by a sharp increase in the maximum dispersion of atomic planes. With increasing nanorod size, the transformation of the crystal structure in regions subjected to cyclic loading leads to the formation of symmetric regions with a different lattice type at the same cyclic loading parameters.