https://pubs.acs.org/doi/10.1021/jacs.5c23137
https://www.jst.go.jp/pr/announce/20260311/index.html
Researchers from Kyushu University and Tokyo University of Science are studying the “Development of Innovative Adhesion Technology through Interfacial Multiscale 4D Analysis”. They have observed, for the first time, the motion of a single interfacial molecular chain at the molecular level, revealing the existence of non-equilibrium behavior. A single interfacial molecular chain contains both thermally active segments and segments whose motion is inhibited by transient adsorption and that these segments exhibit non-equilibrium behavior dependent on their interaction with the solid surface.
This result overturns the conventional view that interfacial molecular chains have uniform mobility. This finding is expected to accelerate molecular design aimed at improving the performance of adhesives for dissimilar materials.