Effect of adsorbed chlorine and oxygen on the shear strength of iron and copper junctions

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Abstract
Static‐friction experiments were performed in ultrahigh vacuum at room temperature on copper, iron, and steel contacts selectively contaminated with oxygen and chlorine in submonolayer amounts. The concentration of the adsorbates was determined with Auger electron spectroscopy and was measured relative to the saturation concentration of oxygen on iron (concentration, 1.0). The coefficient of static friction decreased with increasing adsorbate concentration; however, it was independent of the type of metal and the adsorbate species. The results compared satisfactorily with an extension of the junction growth theory to heterogeneous interfaces. The reduction in interfacial shear strength was measured by the ratio sa/sm, where sa is the shear strength of the interface with an adsorbate concentration of 1.0 and sm is the strength of the clean metal interface. This ratio was 0.835±0.012 for all the systems tested.

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