Charging mechanism for the bond elongation observed in suspended chains of gold atoms

Abnormally large bond lengths (3.5–5.0 Å) between gold atoms forming small chains suspended between two electrodes have been observed in some experiments. Using the density functional theory we explore the possibility that the elongation could arise from the electrical charging of the chains induced in nonequilibrium by the electron beam of the transmission electron microscope used to image the nanowires in those experiments.