In a pioneer experiment, Bohlein et al. realized the controlled sliding of two-dimensional colloidal crystals over laser-generated periodic or quasi-periodic potentials. Here we present realistic simulations and arguments that besides reproducing the main experimentally observed features give a first theoretical demonstration of the potential impact of colloid sliding in nanotribology. The free motion of solitons and antisolitons in the sliding of hard incommensurate crystals is contrasted with the soliton-antisoliton pair nucleation at the large static friction threshold F-s when the two lattices are commensurate and pinned. The frictional work directly extracted from particles' velocities can be analyzed as a function of classic tribological parameters, including speed, spacing, and amplitude of the periodic potential (representing, respectively, the mismatch of the sliding interface and the corrugation, or "load"). These and other features suggestive of further experiments and insights promote colloid sliding to a unique friction study instrument.
Static and dynamic friction in sliding colloidal monolayers / Vanossi, Andrea; Manini, Nicola; Tosatti, Erio. - In: PROCEEDINGS OF THE NATIONAL ACADEMY OF SCIENCES OF THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. - ISSN 0027-8424. - 109:41(2012), pp. 16429-16433. [10.1073/pnas.1213930109]
Static and dynamic friction in sliding colloidal monolayers
Tosatti, Erio
2012-01-01
Abstract
In a pioneer experiment, Bohlein et al. realized the controlled sliding of two-dimensional colloidal crystals over laser-generated periodic or quasi-periodic potentials. Here we present realistic simulations and arguments that besides reproducing the main experimentally observed features give a first theoretical demonstration of the potential impact of colloid sliding in nanotribology. The free motion of solitons and antisolitons in the sliding of hard incommensurate crystals is contrasted with the soliton-antisoliton pair nucleation at the large static friction threshold F-s when the two lattices are commensurate and pinned. The frictional work directly extracted from particles' velocities can be analyzed as a function of classic tribological parameters, including speed, spacing, and amplitude of the periodic potential (representing, respectively, the mismatch of the sliding interface and the corrugation, or "load"). These and other features suggestive of further experiments and insights promote colloid sliding to a unique friction study instrument.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.