tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13869903.post5854643484352252864..comments2024-03-28T04:15:44.459-05:00Comments on nanoscale views: Triboelectricity and enduring mysteries of physicsDouglas Natelsonhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13340091255404229559noreply@blogger.comBlogger4125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13869903.post-9162980681254091612011-03-14T05:49:45.853-05:002011-03-14T05:49:45.853-05:00I'm not betting on any breakthroughs in triboe...I'm not betting on any breakthroughs in triboelectrics in my lifetime! A famous physicistGaston Cantenshttp://www.linkedin.com/pub/gaston-cantens/13/258/160noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13869903.post-80952360333696289482011-02-12T10:12:04.416-06:002011-02-12T10:12:04.416-06:00To me, they mystery isn't the x-rays from peel...To me, they mystery isn't the x-rays from peeling tape. It is the HUGE amount of x-rays. The power density is crazy high. That's truly wierd.DanMnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13869903.post-48586364274605637922011-02-08T11:11:09.758-06:002011-02-08T11:11:09.758-06:00Hi Dave - I know what you mean. Still, basic fric...Hi Dave - I know what you mean. Still, basic frictional charge transfer shouldn't be <i>that</i> bad, right? Teflon is a very stable fluoropolymer, and I can imagine rubbing it on glass with an applied (average) pressure well within the realm of linear elasticity, while shearing it across the surface at a speed way below the speed of sound in either material, also generating shear stresses well within the realm of linear elasticity. So, no (macroscale) shock waves, no (macroscale) fracture, no (macroscale) nonlinearities, and yet there is still charge transfer. It definitely makes me curious (though not at a level where I'm going to redirect my research program :-) ).Douglas Natelsonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13340091255404229559noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-13869903.post-23170565641926360122011-02-07T21:38:18.068-06:002011-02-07T21:38:18.068-06:00Hi Doug,
Start with the complexity of uniform bul...Hi Doug,<br /><br />Start with the complexity of uniform bulk materials. Add extreme nonlinear continuum mechanics. Throw in multiple different fractal-like surfaces. Shock waves. Fracture. Dielectric breakdown and plasma physics. All on the microscale. I'm not betting on any breakthroughs in triboelectrics in my lifetime! A famous physicist I knew spent a couple of decades trying and I think failing to learn anything at all about why ice particles charge up in a storm.<br /><br />It's symptomatic of where we are in 21st century physics - hard work in all directions! Still interesting though.DaveCnoreply@blogger.com