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Linear Aging Behavior at Short Timescales in Nanoscale Contacts
Kaiwen Tian1, Zhuohan Li2, Yun Liu3
1Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA.
Physical Review Letters
|February 1, 2020
Summary
Nanoscale silica contacts show nearly linear aging at short timescales (5-90 ms). This behavior requires specific energy barriers for interfacial bonding, advancing friction models for nanoscale contacts.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Tribology
- Surface Chemistry
Background:
- Nanoscale silica-silica contacts exhibit logarithmic aging.
- This aging is linked to siloxane bond formation between silanol groups.
- Limited data exists for aging times less than 0.1 seconds.
Purpose of the Study:
- Investigate nanoscale aging behavior at short timescales (<0.1 s).
- Determine the kinetic requirements for interfacial bonding during early aging.
- Inform physically based rate and state friction laws for nanoscale contacts.
Main Methods:
- Atomic force microscopy experiments.
- Kinetic Monte Carlo simulations.
- Analysis of interfacial bonding kinetics.
Main Results:
- Nanoscale aging is nearly linear between 5 and 90 ms.
- Linear aging necessitates a specific range of reaction energy barriers.
- A narrow peak in barriers near the upper bound is required for experimental consistency.
Conclusions:
- Short-timescale aging in silica contacts is nearly linear.
- Interfacial bonding kinetics, specifically energy barriers, govern this linear aging.
- Findings refine understanding of nanoscale friction and aging mechanisms.
