Mechanical properties of suspended graphene sheets

Using an atomic force microscope, we measured effective spring constants of stacks of graphene sheets (less than 5) suspended over photolithographically defined trenches in silicon dioxide. Measurements were made on layered graphene sheets of thicknesses between 2 and 8nm, with measured spring constants scaling as expected with the dimensions of the suspended section, ranging from 1to5N∕m. When our data are fitted to a model for doubly clamped...