Mechanical properties of vapor-grown carbon fiber Original Research Article

The elastic properties of individual vapor-grown carbon fibers have been studied via the low-strain, vibrating-reed technique. The average Youngʹs modulus is found to be 680 GPa, with some indication that the intrinsic modulus of CVD carbon may be much higher. This value exceeds those found by earlier high-strain, static-pulling methods. Although the amplitude of vibrational response for these fibers is linear in the driving force, the shape of the frequency response deviates from Lorentzian as the amplitude increases. This behavior has not been previously reported in other materials. Possible explanations based on the fibersʹ microstructure are discussed.