Self-healing of a pre-notched WS2/a-C coating

摘要

This letter reports that a pre-notched WS_(2)/a-C tribocoating surface can be fully healed through sliding. The healed notches act as superior lubricant micro-reservoirs affording frictionless responses leading to an ultralow coefficient of friction (0.02). HR-TEM observations reveal WS_(2) (002) platelets in the healed notch parallel to the outer coating surface and to the V-notch/coating interface. Direct evidence of the rearrangement of WS_(2) at the curved interface elucidates that basal plane reorientation does not occur necessarily parallel to the counterpart sliding direction as was taken for granted in literature. The patchy tribofilm provides a new avenue for self-healing efficiency in tribology.