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Mechanical And Frictional Behavior Of Textured And Non-Textured Surfaces, Raghuram R. Santhapuram

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Tribology is the study of surfaces where two objects are sliding against another. Significant energy is lost due to friction between the sliding surfaces. Therefore, developing or designing surfaces to minimize friction is critical for the durability and reliability of the mechanical components. Several researchers have identified that surface texturing at the nanoscale (nanotexture) would reduce the friction between the contacting surfaces. The nanotextured surfaces have several applications in microelectromechanical systems and nanoelectromechanical systems. This dissertation employs molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the frictional and mechanical response of nanotextured aluminum (Al) and Al/amorphous silicon (a-Si) composite surfaces.

This study determines …