Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 February 2011
The mechanical properties of Si/Ge core-shell nanowires under a unixial tension are studied using molecular-dynamics simulation. The effects of anisotropy and the fraction of the core atoms on the Young's moduli of the core-shell nanowires are examined. The values of their Young's moduli deviate from those calculated using Vegard's law. Single atom chains are formed at the final stages of elongation of the nanowires.