The compressibility of periodically twinned silicon carbide nanowires was studied using in situ high-pressure X-ray diffraction. Twinned SiC nanowires exhibited a bulk modulus of 316GPa; some 20 to 40% higher than previously reported values for SiC having other morphologies. This finding provided direct evidence of a significant effect of twinned structures upon the elastic properties of SiC at the nanoscale and supported previous molecular dynamics simulations of twin boundary/stacking fault-induced strengthening. Both experiments and simulations indicated that nanoscale twinning was an effective means via which to tailor the mechanical properties of nanostructures.

Nanoscale Twinning-Induced Elastic Strengthening in Silicon Carbide Nanowires. Z.J.Lin, L.Wang, J.Zhang, X.Y.Guo, W.Yang, H.K.Mao, Y.Zhao: Scripta Materialia, 2010, 63[10], 981-4