Armchair graphene nanoribbons under shear strain

• The symmetry of the hexagonal lattice is 2/m under shear strain.
• The stability improves with increasing ribbon width under the same shear strain.
• Shear strain makes the band structure a little smoother.
• The modification of the energy gap under shear strain is slight.

The symmetry and electronic properties of armchair graphene nanoribbons (AGNRs) have been investigated using density functional theory calculations. For the shear strained AGNRs, the D6h (6/mmm) symmetry of the hexagonal lattice further turns into 2/m. The stability improves with increasing ribbon width under the same shear strain. Besides, the modification of the energy gap under shear strain is weak.

Graphical AbstractThe undeformed Brillouin zone (BZ) with 6/mmm hexagonal symmetry (panel (a)) and BZ deformed by shear strain with 2/m monoclinic symmetry (panel (b)).Figure optionsDownload as PowerPoint slide