van der Waals interactions between graphitic nanowiggles

TL;DR

This paper investigates van der Waals interactions between parallel graphitic nanowiggles using the coupled dipole method, revealing how these forces vary with position, length, and temperature, impacting stability and potential applications.

Contribution

It introduces the use of the coupled dipole method to explicitly calculate van der Waals interactions in GNWs, considering atomic structure and thermal effects, which is novel in this context.

Findings

Van der Waals forces can switch from attraction to repulsion.

Stable and unstable positions depend on nanowiggle length.

Thermal effects significantly influence interaction strength.

Abstract

The van der Waals interactions between two parallel graphitic nanowiggles (GNWs) are calculated using the coupled dipole method (CDM). The CDM is an efficient and accurate approach to determine such interactions explicitly by taking into account the discrete atomic structure. Our findings show that the van der Waals forces vary from attraction to repulsion as nanoribbons move along their lengths with respect to each other. This feature leads to a number of stable and unstable positions of the system during the movement process. These positions can be tuned by changing the length of GNW. Moreover, the influence of the thermal effect on the van der Waals interactions is also extensively investigated. This work would give good direction for both future theoretical and experimental studies.