Monte Carlo simulation of nanowires of different metals and two-metal alloys

Nanowires of different metals and two-metal alloys have been studied by means of canonical Monte Carlo simulations and the embedded atom method for the interatomic potentials. For nanowires of gold, a relatively stable three-atom-wide chain was observed. The presence of one-atom-wide linear atomic chains is not stable in any case. For two-metal alloy nanowires, the metal with a higher surface energy tends to locate in the inner region of the nanowire. (C) 2011 American Institute of Physics. [doi: 10.1063/1.3549900]