It was noted that stress and strain measures at the atomic scale were required in order to study the effect of inhomogeneities in nanotube-based structures. Three different stress measures were adapted here at the atomic scale, and strain measures were introduced as energetically conjugate quantities. These measures were validated for defect-free nanotubes and were then used to study the mechanics of 5-7-7-5 topological defects in various single-wall nanotubes. It was observed that there was a decrease in the load-carrying capacity in the defected region, and this decrease could be attributed to changes in the kinetics and kinematics in the vicinity of the defects.

Local Elastic Properties of Carbon Nanotubes in the Presence of Stone-Wales Defects. N.Chandra, S.Namilae, C.Shet: Physical Review B, 2004, 69[9], 094101 (12pp)