Nonlinear Instability Modelling of a Nonlocal Strain Gradient Functionally Graded Capacitive Nano-Bridge Under van der Waals force in Thermal Environment

Abstract: This paper developes a theoretical model directed towards investigation of the static pull-in instability of functionally graded (FG) electrostatic nano-bridge under the influence of electrostatic and van der Waals (vdW) forces in thermal environment via nonlocal strain gradient theory (NLSGT) of elasticity and Euler-Bernoulli beam theory in conjunction with the nonlinear geometric effect resulting from mid-plane stretching. The material properties of FG nano-beam are assumed to vary gradually along the thickness direction according to simple power-law form. With the purpose of eliminating the coupling between the stretching and bending due to the asymmetrical material variation along with the thickness, a new surface reference is introduced. The nonlinear integro-differential governing equation is derived utilizing minimum total potential energy principle, linearized by means of the step-by-step linearization method (SSLM) and solved by Galerkin based weighted residual method. The numerical investigations are performed while the emphasis is placed on studying the effect of various parameters including nonlocal parameter, material characteristic length scale, material gradient index, the thermal effect and intermolecular force on the static pull-in instability of FG nano-beam. To establish the validity of the present formulation, a comparison is conducted with experimental and numerical results reported in previous studies.