Vibration of initially stressed micro-and nano-beams

This paper is concerned with the vibration problem of initially stressed micro/nanobeams. The vibration problem is formulated on the basis of Eringen's nonlocal elasticity theory and the Timoshenko beam theory. The small scale effect is taken into consideration in the former theory while the effects of initial stress, transverse shear deformation and rotary inertia are accounted for in the latter theory. The governing equations and the boundary conditions are derived using the principle of virtual work. These equations are solved analytically for the vibration frequencies of micro/nano-beams with different initial stress values and boundary conditions. The effect of the initial stress on the fundamental frequency and vibration mode shape of the beam is investigated. The solutions obtained provide a better representation of the vibration behavior of initially stressed micro/nano-beams which are stubby and short, since the effects of small scale, transverse shear deformation and rotary inertia are significant and cannot be neglected. © World Scientific Publishing Company.