Friction force microscopy is an important analytical tool in the field of tribology on the nanometer-scale. The contact area between the probing tip and the sample is reduced to some square nanometers, corresponding to the ideal of a single asperity contact. Traditional concepts, such as friction coefficients, adhesion and elasticity and stick-slip are re-examined with this novel technique. New concepts based upon classical and quantum mechanics are investigated.

This new book celebrates a decade for this popular series on dynamics in small confining systems. The book covers a broad range of topics related to static and dynamic properties of confining systems: probing of confined systems, structure and dynamics of liquids at interfaces, nanorheology and tribology, adsorption, diffusion in pores, polymers and membranes, dielectric relaxation and biological aspects. Participants from various disciplines share different points of view on the questions of how ultrasmall geometries can force a system to behave in ways significantly different from its behavior in the bulk, how this difference affects molecular properties, and how it is probed.