Atomistic modelling of frictional anisotropy of palladium nanoparticles on graphene

TL;DR

This study uses molecular dynamics to analyze how palladium nanoparticles slide on graphene, revealing that surface incommensurability and deformation suppress directional friction differences.

Contribution

It provides new insights into the frictional anisotropy of palladium nanoparticles on graphene at high speeds, emphasizing the roles of surface order and deformation.

Findings

No significant angular dependence of friction force observed.

Incommensurability reduces frictional anisotropy.

Graphene deformation influences nanoparticle sliding behavior.

Abstract

This article is a continuation of our previous studies of the frictional anisotropy of metal nanoparticles on the surface of a graphene substrate for other temperature conditions. The friction force acting on palladium nanoparticles on a graphene sheet in various lateral directions is investigated using classical molecular dynamics modelling. Anisotropy is studied at high sliding speeds of nanoparticles consisting of 10000 atoms on the surface of graphene. The effect of incommensurability and short-range order of the contact surfaces of nanoparticles, as well as the graphene deformation lead to the absence of an expressed angular dependence of the friction force.