Nanomechanics of rhenium wires: Elastic modulus, yield strength and strain hardening

We report on the mechanical properties of rhenium wires that range in diameter from 400 to 1000 nm under bending, using in situ atomic force microscopy measurements inside a scanning electron microscope combined with finite-element simulations. Load–displacement curves are obtained from elastoplastic bending of nanowires. The average values of the bending modulus and yield stress of nanowires are found to be about 437 and 25 GPa, respectively. Computational simulations have been carried out to fit a power-law strain-hardening model to the experimental load–displacement curves. This allowed the true stress–strain curves to be reconstructed for simple bending experiments.