Single-walled (5,3) gold nanotube-a theoretical study

Total-energy calculations based on first principles reveal that a (5,3) gold nanotube has a helical pitch of 10.05 nm or a natural length of 20.1 Å per unit cell at the minimum total energy. The figure is about 9.5 {\%} shorter than the experimental pitch of 11.0 nm under stress from the experimental setup. Energy bands for both pitches are similar, giving five units of quantum conductance. The calculations indicate that the single-walled gold (5,3) nanotube is a robust and stable conducting wire suitable for nanoelectronic applications.