Nanofluidics: Molecularly thin lubricant layers under confinement
Confined liquid films with a thickness in the range of a few molecular diameters exhibit different mechanical properties than in the bulk.With the technique of a 2-dimensional (2D) imaging surface forces apparatus (SFA) we investigated in detail the layer by layer thinning of a thin liquid film conf...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Journal Article |
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Taylor & Francis Ltd
2005
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/24378 |
| _version_ | 1848751411234340864 |
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| author | Becker, Thomas Mugele, F. |
| author_facet | Becker, Thomas Mugele, F. |
| author_sort | Becker, Thomas |
| building | Curtin Institutional Repository |
| collection | Online Access |
| description | Confined liquid films with a thickness in the range of a few molecular diameters exhibit different mechanical properties than in the bulk.With the technique of a 2-dimensional (2D) imaging surface forces apparatus (SFA) we investigated in detail the layer by layer thinning of a thin liquid film confined between two atomically smooth surfaces upon pressing them towards each other with increasing load. The dynamics of a series of subsequent squeeze-out processes of individual layers were analyzed. Using a simple hydrodynamic model, we extracted the thickness-dependence of the viscosity. For the system investigated here—the model lubricant Octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (OMCTS) confined between ultraclean, recleaved mica surfaces—we found that the viscosity increased by a factor of 10 with decreasing the film thickness from 6 to 2 layers. We decomposed the friction into two components, one describing the sliding of liquid layers on top of the substrates, and the other describing liquid-on-liquid sliding. The latter contribution was found to agree closely with expectations based on the bulk viscosity, whereas the former was approximately 35 times higher for the present system. |
| first_indexed | 2025-11-14T07:52:18Z |
| format | Journal Article |
| id | curtin-20.500.11937-24378 |
| institution | Curtin University Malaysia |
| institution_category | Local University |
| last_indexed | 2025-11-14T07:52:18Z |
| publishDate | 2005 |
| publisher | Taylor & Francis Ltd |
| recordtype | eprints |
| repository_type | Digital Repository |
| spelling | curtin-20.500.11937-243782017-09-13T15:08:25Z Nanofluidics: Molecularly thin lubricant layers under confinement Becker, Thomas Mugele, F. Elastohydrodynamics Confined liquid films Surface forces apparatus Nanotribology Octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane Microelectromechanical systems Confined liquid films with a thickness in the range of a few molecular diameters exhibit different mechanical properties than in the bulk.With the technique of a 2-dimensional (2D) imaging surface forces apparatus (SFA) we investigated in detail the layer by layer thinning of a thin liquid film confined between two atomically smooth surfaces upon pressing them towards each other with increasing load. The dynamics of a series of subsequent squeeze-out processes of individual layers were analyzed. Using a simple hydrodynamic model, we extracted the thickness-dependence of the viscosity. For the system investigated here—the model lubricant Octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane (OMCTS) confined between ultraclean, recleaved mica surfaces—we found that the viscosity increased by a factor of 10 with decreasing the film thickness from 6 to 2 layers. We decomposed the friction into two components, one describing the sliding of liquid layers on top of the substrates, and the other describing liquid-on-liquid sliding. The latter contribution was found to agree closely with expectations based on the bulk viscosity, whereas the former was approximately 35 times higher for the present system. 2005 Journal Article http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/24378 10.1080/08927020412331337069 Taylor & Francis Ltd restricted |
| spellingShingle | Elastohydrodynamics Confined liquid films Surface forces apparatus Nanotribology Octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane Microelectromechanical systems Becker, Thomas Mugele, F. Nanofluidics: Molecularly thin lubricant layers under confinement |
| title | Nanofluidics: Molecularly thin lubricant layers under confinement |
| title_full | Nanofluidics: Molecularly thin lubricant layers under confinement |
| title_fullStr | Nanofluidics: Molecularly thin lubricant layers under confinement |
| title_full_unstemmed | Nanofluidics: Molecularly thin lubricant layers under confinement |
| title_short | Nanofluidics: Molecularly thin lubricant layers under confinement |
| title_sort | nanofluidics: molecularly thin lubricant layers under confinement |
| topic | Elastohydrodynamics Confined liquid films Surface forces apparatus Nanotribology Octamethylcyclotetrasiloxane Microelectromechanical systems |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/24378 |