Abstract
Friction of hydrogen-passivated surfaces can be reduced by replacing terminating hydrogen atoms with heavier deuteriums. Using molecular-dynamics simulations, we show that this experimentally observed isotope effect can be explained quantitatively by small differences in surface coverage, which are due to isotope-dependent bond stabilities. We also demonstrate that a change in vibrational frequencies alone does not account for an isotope-dependent solid friction in our model system.
- Received 19 June 2009
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevB.80.155438
©2009 American Physical Society