Vibration and buckling characteristics of functionally graded nanoplates subjected to thermal loading based on surface elasticity theory

The buckling and vibration responses of nanoplates made of functionally graded materials (FGMs) subjected to thermal loading are studied in prebuckling domain with considering the effect of surface stress. To accomplish this purpose, Gurtin–Murdoch elasticity theory is incorporated into the classical plate theory to develop a non-classical plate model including the surface effects. The material properties of FGM nanoplate are considered to be graded in the thickness direction on the basis of the power law function. Hamilton׳s principle is utilized to derive size-dependent governing differential equations of motion and associated boundary conditions. Selected numerical results are presented to indicate the importance of surface stress effect. It is revealed that in the presence of surface stress effect, the influence of material property gradient index on the critical thermal buckling load is more prominent for FGM nanoplates with lower length-to-thickness ratios. Also, by increasing the natural frequency of FGM nanoplate, the role of surface stress effect in the value of critical thermal buckling load is more prominent.