Melnikov’s method for chaos of the nanoplate postulating nonlinear foundation

In this brief communication, Melnikov’s method is adopted to investigate the chaotic behaviors of a nanoplate postulating nonlinear Winkler foundation. The critical curves separating the chaotic and non-chaotic regions are found. It is presented that the chaotic behaviors can occur when the parameters are chosen in the chaotic regions. Numerical simulations verify the theoretical analytical results. The results provide some inspiration and guidance for the analysis and dynamic design of this nanoplate.