Journal of the Korean Physical Society, Vol. 65, No. 2, July 2014, pp. 185∼189 Molecular Dynamics Study on the C 60 Oscillator in a Graphene Nanoribbon Trench Jeong Won Kang ∗ Graduate School of Transportation, Korea National University of Transportation, Uiwang 437-763, Korea and Department of IT Convergence, Korea National University of Transportation, Chungju 380-702, Korea Kang Whan Lee † Interdisciplinary Program in Creative Engineering, School of Computer Science and Engineering, Korea University of Technology and Education, Cheonan 330-708, Korea (Received 14 January 2014, in final form 14 February 2014) Here, we present a C60 oscillator encapsulated in a graphene nanoribbon (GNR) trench. The mechanisms of the C60/GNR-trench oscillators are the same as those of the multi-walled carbon- nanotube (CNT) oscillators. While the array synthesis of these CNT oscillators is very difficult, the same GNR trench array can be implemented by using current nanofabrication processes. The oscillatory behaviors of a C60 oscillator sucked into a GNR trench were investigated in impulse dy- namics via classical molecular dynamics simulations. The oscillatory motions of the C60 oscillator in the GNR trench can be controlled by using the length and the width of the trench as structural parameters because the restoring forces acting on the C60 oscillator are related to the width of the GNR trench and the length of the GNR trench is the direct distance of motion of the C60 oscillator during translation. C60/GNR-trench nanostructures have a wide range of applications in nanotechnology, such as shuttle memories and switches, sensors, and oscillators. PACS numbers: 61.46.Fg, 81.07.De, 81.07.Oj, 83.10.Rs Keywords: C 60 oscillator, Graphene, Graphene nanoribbon, Gigahertz oscillator, Molecular dynamics DOI: 10.3938/jkps.65.185 I. INTRODUCTION Nanoelectromechanical system (NEMS) devices offer the promise of new applications in fundamental science and engineering, and allow us to probe fundamental nanoscale properties, such as sensing, studies of funda- mental physics, and high-frequency signal processing [1]. Recently, graphenes [2,3] have been considered as ideal candidates for NEMS devices because of their unique me- chanical properties [4]. Graphene has a high elasticity compared to other materials being applied to NEMSs. A large surface and ultralow mass density with the atomic thickness of graphene provides a special advantage over other nanostructures for ultra-sensitive resonators. Fullerenes [5], molecules composed entirely of carbon in the form of hollow spheres, were prepared in 1985, and since then, have been the subject of intense research, both for their unique chemistry and for their technologi- cal applications, especially in material science, electron- ∗ E-mail: jwkang@ut.ac.kr; Tel: +82-31-462-8739; Fax: +82-31- 462-8734 † E-mail: kwlee@kut.ac.kr; Author to whom correspondence should be addressed ics, and nanotechnology [6]. C 60 Buckminsterfullerene, a spherical fullerene called a ‘buckyball’ (named after the experimental geometer R. Buckminster (Bucky) Fuller, who pioneered spherical geodesics), has been best known as a zero-dimensional carbon nanostructure. Recently, the C 60 buckminsterfullerene on graphene was consid- ered as a model system to test the strength of van der Waals (vdW) forces [7]. Mechanical stability, friction, and adhesion are among the physical properties that strongly depend on the vdW interactions on a nanoscale [7]. Recently, substrate-regulated graphene morphologies have been intensively investigated [8, 9]. In particu- lar, Hicks et al. [8] reported that graphene nanorib- bon (GNR) [10] trenches enabled a substantial elec- tronic bandgap by coating bi-layer graphene on silicon- carbide nanometer-scale steps. Through the adhesion of graphene to the substrate due to attractive forces, the GNR trench morphology can be formed on a trench in the substrate’s surface [8]. Such a GNR trench pos- sesses large empty spaces inside the trench that are like the large empty spaces inside carbon nanotubes (CNTs) [11]. In particular, another type of self-assembled hybrid structure, called the ‘carbon nanopeapod (CNP)’, con- -185-