Physics Colloquium
Friday, April 15th, 2005, 4:00 P.M.

Jacqueline Krim

Department of Physics, North Carolina State University

Nanotribology: The Atomic-Scale Origins of Friction

Long neglected by physicists, the study of friction's atomic-level origins, or nanotribology, indicates that the force stems from various unexpected sources, including sound energy. Progress in this field will be discussed, including our use of a quartz microbalance to measure the force to slide one- and two-atom thick films along ordered metal substrates, our observation of a reduction in friction when a material enters a superconducting state, and applications in the area of MEMS.

http://www.physics.ncsu.edu/faculty/faculty.html?/faculty/krim.html