Frictional Rheology of a Confined Adsorbed Polymer Layer

The sliding dynamics of a confined adsorbed polymer layer is investigated at the nanoscale, A combined mechanical and physical approach is used to model the rheology and structure of the adsorbed layer, The confinement at short distances governs the nanotribological behavior of the polymer layer formed close to the surface. It appears that the Amontons' proportionality between frictional and normal stresses does not hold here: the higher the contact pressure, the lower the friction. Besides, the sliding stress is strongly dependent on the velocity: it increases with the sliding velocity. Using a model based on the kinetics of formation and rupture of adhesive bonds between the two shearing surfaces theoretically accounts for the behavior of this system. This approach allows us to correlate the frictional properties to the molecular organization on the surfaces.