Negative Poisson's ratio as the anomalous characteristic generally exists in
artificial architectures, such as re-entrant and honeycomb structures. The
structures with negative Poisson's ratio have attracted intensive attention due
to their unique auxetic effect and many promising applications in shear
resistant and energy absorption fields. However, experimental observation of
negative Poisson's ratio in natural materials barely happened, although various
two-dimensional layered materials are predicted in theory. Herein, we report
the anisotropic Raman response and the intrinsic intralayer negative Poisson's
ratio of two-dimensional natural black arsenic (b-As) via strain engineering
strategy. The results were evident by the detailed Raman spectrum of b-As under
uniaxial strain together with density functional theory calculations. It is
found that b-As was softer along the armchair than zigzag direction. The
anisotropic mechanical features and van der Waals interactions play essential
roles in strain-dependent Raman shifts and negative Poisson's ratio in the
natural b-As along zigzag direction. This work may shed a light on the
mechanical properties and potential applications of two-dimensional puckered
materials.Comment: 23 pages, 4 figure