Single-Contact Problem in Atomically Flat Interfaces: a Simulation Approach

Abstract

Understanding friction at single-asperity contacts is essential for bridging the gap between nanoscale structural superlubricity and realistic tribological systems dominated by Hertzian contact geometry. In this work, we combine atomistic simulations and a modified continuum model to investigate the onset of sliding at crystalline SiO$_2$/SiO$_2$ interfaces. Interfacial sliding potential energy surfaces (ISPES) are computed to determine the load-dependent shear strength and minimal-scale sliding (MSS) friction. Both quantities exhibit linear dependence on normal pressure below 3 GPa, and have non-zero values at zero pressure. Incorporating these parameters, we extend the classical Mindlin model by including adhesion and nanoscale load effects, allowing us to describe the stick to slip transition under realistic Hertzian stress distributions. The model shows that nonuniform pressure distributions substantially lower the effective static friction, and oscillatory-shear experiments on graphene-passivated contacts reproduce both the predicted stiffness-collapse signature and, in the passivated limit, the adhesion-limited shear strength obtained from simulation, supporting the model's relevance to real micro-asperity tribology.