Mechanics Interpretation on the Bending Stiffness and Wrinkled Pattern of Graphene

Abstract

In this paper we attempt to answer two questions on graphene from a mechanic's viewpoint: why does this oneatomthick monolayer have finite bending stiffness to ensure its stability? and what is its wrinkle mechanism? As for the first question, it is found that the repulsive residual internal moment in the bond angle can lead to a nonzero bending stiffness, which makes the graphene flat. Together with longrange attraction among atoms, such as van der Waals forces, a graphene prefers to have a selfbuckling wrinkled configuration with many waves.