Experts float levitation theory
"The Casimir force is the ultimate cause of friction in the nano world, in particular in some microelectromechanical systems," explained St Andrews University physicists Professor Ulf Leonhardt.
"Such systems already play an important role - for example tiny mechanical devices which trigger a car airbag to inflate or those which power tiny devices used for drugs testing or chemical analysis.
"Micro or nano machines could run smoother and with less or no friction at all if one can manipulate the force."
Prof Leonhardt added: "In order to reduce friction in the nano world, turning nature's stickiness into repulsion could be the ultimate remedy.
"Instead of sticking together, parts of micro machinery would levitate."
[The research is due to be published in the New Journal of Physics.]
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment