References

Some of our recent experimental and theoretical results regarding materials mechanics at the nanoscale will be briefly reviewed. The main theme includes carbon nanotubes and nanotube-based composite materials. Carbon nanotubes hold great promises as a possible reinforcing phase in composite materials of a new kind. Such developments still present, however, enormous practical challenges, in particular when attempting to probe the properties of individual nanotubes, for which most studies consist of computer simulations. We report promising results regarding polymer-nanotube wetting and interfacial adhesion. The potential use of nanotubes as sensors in composite matrices is also briefly outlined