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The temperature dependence of the elastic moduli was estimated from ultrasound time of flight measurements performed on bulk metallic glasses of composition Zr63-xCu24AlxNi10Co3. Using the corresponding values at the glass transition temperature, the local atomic strain was determined. The obtained values for the critical atomic strain calculated for 8 at% < x < 15 at% are close to the predicted universal criterion derived from a topological model, but may also reflect the difference in the chemical interaction that are not accounted by a topological approach.

Indentation experiments on the nanometre scale have been performed by means of atomic force microscopy in ultra-high vacuum on KBr(100) surfaces. The surfaces yield in the form of discrete surface displacements with a typical length scale of 1 Å. These surface displacements are detected in both normal and lateral directions. Measurement of the lateral tip displacement requires a load-dependent calibration due to the load dependence of the effective lateral compliance. Correlation of the lateral and normal displacements for each glide event allow identification of the activated slip system. The results are discussed in terms of the resolved shear stress in indentation experiments and of typical results in atomistic simulations of nanometre-scale indentation.

Molecular processes in the frictional response of an alkanethiol monolayer, self-assembled on a Au(111) surface, are studied by means of high-resolution friction force microscopy in ultrahigh vacuum. With increasing load, three regimes are observed on defect-free domains of the monolayer: smooth sliding with negligible friction, regular molecular stick-slip motion with increasing friction, and the onset of wear in the monolayer. Molecular contrast in the lateral force is found for inequivalent molecules within the unit cell of the c(4 × 2) superstructure. Significant differences in the frictional response are found between defect-free domains and areas including a domain boundary. Friction increases by an order of magnitude on domain boundaries in connection with irregular stick-slip motion. This increased friction at domain boundaries is observed at loads below the onset of wear.

Nanometer-scale friction measurements on a Au(111) surface have been performed at temperatures between 30 and 300 K by means of atomic force microscopy. Stable stick slip with atomic periodicity is observed at all temperatures, showing only weak dependence on temperature between 300 and 170 K. Below 170 K, friction increases with time and a distortion of the stick-slip characteristic is observed. Low friction and periodic stick slip can be reestablished by pulling the tip out of contact and subsequently restoring the contact. A comparison with molecular dynamics simulations indicates that plastic deformation within a growing gold junction leads to the observed frictional behavior at low temperatures. The regular stick slip with atomic periodicity observed at room temperature is the result of a dynamic equilibrium shape of the contact, as microscopic wear damage is observed to heal in the sliding contact.

The influence of anion adsorption on friction forces in an electrochemical environment has been studied by means of lateral force microscopy on Au(1 1 1) surfaces. Sensitivity to atomic stick-slip motion allows to reveal sulphate adsorption in ordered layers under the sliding tip at potentials lower than expected from cyclic voltammetry for the open surface. No ordered adsorption is found in lateral force measurements for the weakly adsorbed perchlorate anions. Correspondingly, some increase in friction in the anion adsorption regime is observed for sulphate but none for perchlorate adsorption. Friction increases significantly at the onset of oxidation in both sulphuric and perchloric acid solutions.

Friction between the sliding tip of an atomic force microcope and a gold surface changes dramatically upon electrochemical oxidation of the gold surface. Atomicscale variations of the lateral force reveal details of the friction mechanisms. Stick-slip motion with atomic periodicity on perfect Au(111) terraces exhibits extremely low friction and almost no dependence on load. Significant friction is observed only abouve a load threshold at which wear Of the surface is initiated. In contrast, irregular stick slip motion and a linear increase of friction with load are. observed on electrochemically oxidized surfaces. The observations are discussed with reference to the amorphous structure of the oxo-hydroxide surface and atomic place exchange Mechanisms upon oxidation. Reversible, fast switching between the two states of friction has been achieved in both perchloric and sulfuric acid solutions.

The contact mechanics of a fibrillar micro-fabricated surface structure made of poly(dimethyl siloxane) (PDMS) is studied. The attachment and detachment of individual fibrils to and from a spherical indenter upon approach and retraction are detected as jumps in force and stiffness. A quantitative model describes the stiffness values by taking into account the deformation of the fibrils and the backing layer. The results emphasize the importance of long-range interactions in the contact mechanics of elastic materials and confirm some of the important concepts underlying the development of fibrillar adhesive materials.

The mechanistic details of the pressure-induced B1-B2 phase transition of rubidium chloride are investigated in a series of transition path sampling molecular dynamics simulations. The B2→B1 transformation proceeds by nucleation and growth involving several, initially separated, nucleation centers. We show how independent and partially correlated nucleation events can function within a global mechanism and explore the evolution of phase domains during the transition. From this, the mechanisms of grain boundary formation are elaborated. The atomic structure of the domain-domain interfaces fully support the concept of Bernal polyhedra. Indeed, the manifold of different grain morphologies obtained from our simulations may be rationalized on the basis of essentially only two different kinds of Bernal polyhedra. The latter also play a crucial role for the B1→B2 transformation and specific grain boundary motifs are identified as preferred nucleation centers for this transition.

Nanotribology explores the mechanical properties of materials at small length scales, where deviations from the scaling laws of macroscopic descriptions are observed. Atomic force microscopy is introduced as an important instrument in nanotribology for imaging friction contrasts on heterogeneous surfaces, for quantitative friction studies, and for the observation of single dislocation processes in plastic deformation. Recent experimental results for the frictional properties of carbon-based materials are discussed. Friction studies using microstructured surfaces are presented as an attempt to bridge the gap between nanotribological and macroscopic friction studies.

Structural and frictional properties of single-layer and bilayer graphene films on a SiC(0001) substrate are studied by means of atomic force microscopy with atomic resolution. Friction on single-layer graphene is found to be a factor of two larger than on bilayer films for a variety of experimental situations. The friction contrast is found not to originate in differences in structural properties, in lateral contact stiffness, or in contact potential. The transition from atomic stick-slip friction to a regime of ultralow friction is found to occur at normal loads of 40 nN when the tip-sample interaction potential approaches 0.1-0.2 eV.