Title: Characterisations of friction force and sliding velocity in nano-scale interfacial friction

Authors: Liao Ningbo, Yang Ping

Addresses: Laboratory of Materials & Micro-Structural Integrity, School of Mechanical Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, 212013, PR China. ' Laboratory of Materials & Micro-Structural Integrity, School of Mechanical Engineering, Jiangsu University, Zhenjiang, 212013, PR China

Abstract: Friction is a process involving very complicated energy dissipation. For MEMS, failures are often caused by adhesion and wear of the contact surfaces. The mechanisms responsible for energy dissipation during friction are quite baffling. In this paper, molecular dynamics simulation of nano-scale interfacial friction between different materials is proposed. The Newton|s equations of motion are established utilising the Morse potential function. The improved Verlet algorithm is employed to solve atom trajectories. Result showed that when the interface formed, friction force fluctuated periodically. Comparing the results of computer simulation with experiment results, we verify the model|s validity. Base on the model, we studied Cu sliding along Al with uniform speed and accelerated motion; the mechanical properties of the surface were analysed. The effect of driving force on sliding velocity and friction force is also investigated.

Keywords: molecular dynamics; friction force; sliding velocity; MEMS; nanoscale interfacial friction; energy dissipation; microelectromechanical systems; simulation; driving force; mechanical properties; surface properties.

DOI: 10.1504/IJMSI.2007.013872

International Journal of Materials and Structural Integrity, 2007 Vol.1 No.1/2/3, pp.190 - 200

Published online: 31 May 2007 *

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