Cascade of Modal Interactions in Nanomechanical Resonators with Soft Clamping
Abstract
We uncover a chain of nonlinear modal interactions in softly clamped nanostring resonators. The process involves the sequential coupling of five mechanical modes, during frequency sweeps, yielding a broad nonlinear response with nearly constant amplitude. We demonstrate that soft clamping enables this cascaded energy transfer and amplifies the effective geometric nonlinearity of the driven mode by an order of magnitude. Analytical and finite element-based reduced-order models capture the key features of the coupling cascade and clarify its underlying mechanism. The phenomenon is generic in nonlinear vibrational systems and can be tailored through soft-clamping design strategies.
Fields of Study & Subjects
Mechanical and Optical Resonators
Nonlocal and gradient elasticity in micro/nano structures
Force Microscopy Techniques and Applications
Publication details
- Journal / source
- Physical Review Letters
- Publisher
- American Physical Society (APS)
- Volume
- 136
- Issue
- 9
- Pages
- 097202–097202
- Publication date
- 3 February 2026
- Language
- EN