Measuring the Size Dependence of Young s Modulus Using Force Modulation Atomic Force Microscopy

Published

October 12, 2021

Author(s)

William J. Price, C. Leighton, Stephen M. Hsu, Timothy Patten, Gang-Yu Liu

Abstract

The question of whether the Young s modulus of organic thin films depends on the size of the materials at the nanometer scale is systematically investigated. Using atomic force microscopy (AFM) based imaging and lithography, nanostructures with designed size, shape and functionality are preenginerred, e.g. nanostructures of octadecanethiols inlaid in decanethiol self-assembled monolayers (SAMs). The structure, size and shape of these nanostructures are characterized using AFM, followed by force modulation spectroscopy and microscopy measurements. Young s modulus is then extracted from these measurements using a continuum mechanics model. The apparent Young s modulus is found to decrease nonlinearly with the decreasing size of these nanostructures. This systematic study presents conclusive evidence of the size-dependence of elasticity in the nanoregime. The approach utilized may be applied to study various materials and other mechanical properties.

Citation

Journal of Physical Chemistry B

Pub Type

Journals

Keywords

force modulation, size dependence, Young's modulus

Citation

Price, W. , Leighton, C. , Hsu, S. , Patten, T. and Liu, G. (2021), Measuring the Size Dependence of Young s Modulus Using Force Modulation Atomic Force Microscopy, Journal of Physical Chemistry B (Accessed October 14, 2025)