Magnetically affected single-walled carbon nanotubes as nanosensors

• Magnetically affected SWCNTs as nanomechanical sensors are theoretically studied.
• The key equations for cantilevered and bridged SWCNTs as nanosensors are derived.
• The roles of magnetic field strength and added mass on sensitivity are examined.
• Cantilevered SWCNTs show more sensitivity w.r.t. the magnetic field strength.
• The sensitivity of SWCNTs is enhanced by apply of a longitudinal magnetic field.

The influence of longitudinal magnetic fields on the nanomechanical sensing behavior of single-walled carbon nanotubes (SWCNTs) is of interest. To this end, a nonlocal mathematical model is proposed to study alteration of the fundamental flexural frequency of a magnetically affected SWCNT due to an arbitrarily added nanoparticle. The explicit expressions for the frequency shift of magnetically affected cantilevered and bridged SWCNTs due to the addition of a nanoparticle at the tip and midspan points are obtained. The predicted results reveal that the mechanical sensing of SWCNTs is generally enhanced by application of the longitudinal magnetic field.