Friction is a key phenomenon in applied physics, whose origin has been studied for centuries. Until now, it has been understood that mechanical wear-resistance and fluid lubrication affect friction, ...

At large scales, water flows faster through a wider pipe than a narrower one. However, in tiny carbon nanotubes flow-rate is flipped, with water moving faster through the narrowest channels. This week ...

Friction is a key phenomenon in applied physics, whose origin has been studied for centuries. Until now, it has been understood that mechanical wear-resistance and fluid lubrication affect friction, ...

Water flows more easily through narrower carbon nanotubes than larger ones and we have struggled to explain why. Now, one team has an answer: it may all be due to quantum friction. Friction in its ...

The friction between a car tire and the underlying asphalt drops off dangerously in rainy weather. Now, physicists in Germany and Italy have proposed an explanation for how even slight wetness can cut ...