Research on anisotropy of elliptical vibration-assisted nano-cutting of single crystal silicon

Abstract Single-crystal silicon, an anisotropic material, exhibits distinct differences in cutting characteristics across various crystal orientations. This paper studies the influence of elliptical vibration cutting on the anisotropic cutting behavior of single-crystal silicon through molecular dynamics simulation. The elliptical vibration nano-cutting is performed along two typical crystallographic directions of each of the (100), (110), and (111) crystal planes. The findings reveal considerable anisotropy in the surface consistency, material removal rate, stress, phase transformation, cutting force, and cutting temperature of single-crystal silicon when cut across different crystal orientations. Specifically, the [0-11] and [010] crystallographic directions on the (100) plane demonstrate the highest surface integrity, while the [1-10] direction on the (110) plane shows the lowest. In terms of material removal rate, the [00-1] direction on the (110) plane has the greatest rate (79.1%), whereas the [-1-12] direction on the (111) plane records the smallest (70.8%). Analysis of the coordination number and radial distribution function reveals less phase changes in the [0-11], [010] directions on the (100) plane and the [00-1] direction on the (110) plane. Notably, the [00-1] direction on the (110) plane contains about 27% fewer 5-coordinated atoms than the [0-11] direction on the (111) plane. The cutting force analysis indicates that the mean tangential forces in the (100) [0-11], (100) [010], and (110)[00-1] directions are smaller, suggesting a relatively easier cutting process in these directions.