Noncontact friction and force fluctuations between closely spaced bodies

Abstract

The measurement of noncontact friction between closely spaced bodies was performed at various temperatures. Analysis was performed between Au(111) and gold-coated cantilever using Brownian motion and cantilever damping observations. The force fluctuations were interpreted in terms of near-surface fluctuating electric fields using the fluctuation-dissipation theorem. The importance of inhomogeneous contact potential was discussed in comparison with measurements over dielectric surfaces.