# Dramatic effect of a transverse electric field on frictional properties of graphene

## TL;DR

This study demonstrates that applying a transverse electric field can significantly alter the frictional properties of graphene, including inducing negative friction coefficients, which could enable electric control of nanomaterial interactions.

## Contribution

It reveals how transverse electric fields influence interfacial forces and friction in graphene, showing electric field control over nanomaterial frictional behavior for the first time.

## Key findings

- Electric charge affects normal force significantly.
- Friction force remains stable under certain electric fields.
- Negative friction coefficient can be achieved at critical field strengths.

## Abstract

We study the influence of transverse electric fields on the interfacial forces between a graphene layer and a carbon nanotube tip by means of atomistic simulations, in which a Gaussian regularized charge-dipole potential is combined with classical force fields. A significant effect of the field-induced electric charge on the normal force is observed. The normal pressure is found to be sensitive to the presence of a transverse electric field, while the friction force remains relatively invariant for the here-used field intensities. The contact can even be turned to have a negative coefficient of friction in a constant-distance scenario when the field strength reaches a critical value, which increases with decreasing tip-surface distance. These results shed light on how the frictional properties of nanomaterials can be controlled via applied electric fields.