Understanding the dynamics and mechanics of molecular films on surfaces with nanoscopic curvature is critical to understanding nanoparticle dispersion and catalysis, as well as the effects of organic lubricants at solid-solid interfaces which are dominated by asperity contacts. Past studies employing spectroscopy, atomic force microscopy, and molecular dynamics have focused on the effect of surface curvature on the properties of self-assembled monolayers derived from organosilanes, using nanoparticles as model surfaces with tunable surface curvature. To understand how organic lubricants behave at asperity contacts, contact simulations of asperity surfaces, i.e. nanoparticles, with organic films and organic lubricants, have been conducted to study their effects on the contact mechanics and surface forces, pressures, and strains at asperity contacts in molecular detail. The use of nanoparticles as model surfaces facilitates extension of this information to systems including metal oxide nanoparticles and quantum dots, in particular the effects of capping layers upon their properties.

Giving molecules the squeeze: The effects of organic lubricants on the interactions between surfaces with nanoscopic curvature studied by molecular dynamics

245th National Meeting (2013)

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