Mechanical properties of freely suspended atomically thin dielectric layers of mica

Abstract

We have studied the elastic deformation of freely suspended atomically thin sheets of muscovite mica, a widely used electrical insulator in its bulk form. Using an atomic force microscope, we carried out bending test experiments to determine the Young's modulus and the initial pre-tension of mica nanosheets with thicknesses ranging from 14 layers down to just one bilayer. We found that their Young's modulus is high (190 GPa), in agreement with the bulk value, which indicates that the exfoliation procedure employed to fabricate these nanolayers does not introduce a noticeable amount of defects. Additionally, ultrathin mica shows low pre-strain and can withstand reversible deformations up to tens of nanometers without breaking. The low pre-tension and high Young's modulus and breaking force found in these ultrathin mica layers demonstrates their prospective use as a complement for graphene in applications requiring flexible insulating materials or as reinforcement in nanocomposites.

arXiv comment9 pages, 5 figures, selected as cover of Nano Research, Volume 5, Number 8 (2012)

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• Naturally occurring van der Waals materials
• InSe: a two-dimensional semiconductor with superior flexibility
• Fast and reliable identification of atomically thin layers of TaSe2 crystals
• Layer-dependent mechanical properties and enhanced plasticity in the van der Waals chromium trihalide magnets
• Indentation metrology of clamped, ultra-thin elastic sheets
• High throughput investigation of an emergent and naturally abundant 2D material: Clinochlore
• First-principles study of organically modified muscovite mica with ammonium (NH${}_4^{+}$) or methylammonium (CH${}_3$NH${}_3^{+}$) ion
• Quantum spin Hall effect in two-dimensional transition-metal chalcogenides