Molecular dynamics simulation on the buckling behavior of silicon nanowires under uniaxial compression

Molecular dynamics simulations with Stillinger–Weber potential are used to study the buckling behavior of single-crystalline silicon nanowires under uniaxial compression. Nanowires with axial orientations along the [1 0 0], [1 1 0], [1 1 1], and [1 1 2] crystallographic directions, which correspond to experimentally synthesized nanowires, are studied. The effects of simulation temperature, strain rate, and wire length on the buckling behavior are investigated. The simulation results indicate that critical load clearly decreases with increasing temperature and with decreasing strain rate. Additionally, the present results show that the critical load decreases with the increase of wire length, which is in agreement with the Euler theory.