On the Slipperiness of Surfactants: Charge-Mediated Friction Control at the Molecular Scale
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arXiv
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| Autores principales: | , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Formato: | Preprint |
| Publicado: |
2025
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| _version_ | 1866914006358294528 |
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| author | Xie, Kaili Jagielka, Julie Peng, Liang Han, Yu Lee, Yedam Franklin, Steve Wang, Yongkang Hazrah, Arsh Bonn, Mischa Dijksman, Joshua Bonn, Daniel |
| author_facet | Xie, Kaili Jagielka, Julie Peng, Liang Han, Yu Lee, Yedam Franklin, Steve Wang, Yongkang Hazrah, Arsh Bonn, Mischa Dijksman, Joshua Bonn, Daniel |
| contents | From soap-covered dishes to freshly cleaned floors, surfactants can make surfaces slippery; yet, the underlying mechanism remains poorly understood. Here, we identify the molecular origin behind this ubiquitous phenomenon using macroscopic tribology and surface molecular spectroscopy. We demonstrate that reducing friction through surfactants hinges on charge complementarity: surfactants of opposite charge to the solid surface reduce friction even at extreme contact pressures, whereas like-charged or neutral surfactants are ineffective. Oppositely charged surfactants self-assemble into dense and robust molecular brushes, creating a persistent lubrication beyond the limits of conventional mechanisms. This charge-mediated approach offers a universal and scalable framework for friction control across length scales without significant surface modification. |
| format | Preprint |
| id |
arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2508_18962 |
| institution | arXiv |
| publishDate | 2025 |
| record_format | arxiv |
| spellingShingle | On the Slipperiness of Surfactants: Charge-Mediated Friction Control at the Molecular Scale Xie, Kaili Jagielka, Julie Peng, Liang Han, Yu Lee, Yedam Franklin, Steve Wang, Yongkang Hazrah, Arsh Bonn, Mischa Dijksman, Joshua Bonn, Daniel Chemical Physics Soft Condensed Matter From soap-covered dishes to freshly cleaned floors, surfactants can make surfaces slippery; yet, the underlying mechanism remains poorly understood. Here, we identify the molecular origin behind this ubiquitous phenomenon using macroscopic tribology and surface molecular spectroscopy. We demonstrate that reducing friction through surfactants hinges on charge complementarity: surfactants of opposite charge to the solid surface reduce friction even at extreme contact pressures, whereas like-charged or neutral surfactants are ineffective. Oppositely charged surfactants self-assemble into dense and robust molecular brushes, creating a persistent lubrication beyond the limits of conventional mechanisms. This charge-mediated approach offers a universal and scalable framework for friction control across length scales without significant surface modification. |
| title | On the Slipperiness of Surfactants: Charge-Mediated Friction Control at the Molecular Scale |
| topic | Chemical Physics Soft Condensed Matter |
| url | https://arxiv.org/abs/2508.18962 |