Tight-binding normal mode analysis of suspended single-wall carbon nanotubes

Abstract

We present a detailed normal mode analysis of suspended single-wall carbon nanotubes based on a non-orthogonal tight-binding formalism and a new methodology for classifying vibrational modes, using geometry-adapted merit functions. The fundamental modes are in good agreement with experiments and previous calculations. The analysis of the high-order vibrations evidences interesting non-classical features, while the sensitivity of the normal modes to the nanotube geometry provides new insights useful for practical realizations of mass resonators.