Decisive role of microstrains in the formation of the domain structure in multiwall carbon nanotubes

The present paper deals with the structure of carbon nanotubes of various diameters. The results of X-ray diffractometry and transmission electron microscopy are analyzed in detail. It is shown that the studied carbon nanotubes have one or several types of domain boundaries (zigzag, armchair). The role of uniaxial microstrains in the formation of the domain structure in carbon nanotubes is great. The number of significant independent microstrains determines the number of the domain types in the MWCNT structure. Tubes experiencing only the εzz strain have a single-domain structure. Multiwall carbon nanotubes with strains εzz and εxx have a multi-domain structure. Non-equilibrium microstrains at interfaces during energy dissipation can lead to the hysteresis of thermal and mechanical properties.