Shortened abstract:

This thesis uses the mechanical resonance technique to investigate and characterise the mechanical behaviour of nanowires. While previous work has mainly focused on simple, uniform nanowires, this thesis extends the resonance technique to incorporate more complex morphologies. Specifically, tapered nanowires with surface effects and curved nanowires with irregular cross-sections were investigated through experiments and modelling. This works will aid in advancing the pace of nanowire development by extending the resonance technique to describe such nanowire morphologies.