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Gecko's Stickiness Surpassed

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ATLANTA, Oct. 15, 2008 -- An improved carbon nanotube-based material creates, for the first time, directionally varied adhesive force and has a gripping ability nearly three times the previous record and 10 times as strong as a gecko, a team of researchers from four US institutions is reporting. This close-up view shows the elastic hairs that allow a gecko to climb walls and cling to ceilings. (Image: Wikipedia Commons) Scientists have long been interested in the ability of these lizards to cling to ceilings and even polished glass by their toes. The creatures owe this amazing ability to microscopic branched elastic...Read full article

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    Published: October 2008
    Glossary
    adhesion
    The intermolecular attraction between two surfaces, as between a substrate and a coating; it is an important factor in the durability of optical thin films.
    adhesive
    An intermolecular substance that serves to hold materials together. Two types are used in the optical industry: one, which must be transparent and colorless, to cement lenses together; and a general-purpose adhesive for bonding prisms and other glass parts to their metallic supports.
    chemical vapor deposition
    Chemical vapor deposition is a process of applying dopants to a glass bait by flame reactions of gaseous compounds. See also outside vapor-phase oxidation; inside vapor-phase oxidation.
    nano
    An SI prefix meaning one billionth (10-9). Nano can also be used to indicate the study of atoms, molecules and other structures and particles on the nanometer scale. Nano-optics (also referred to as nanophotonics), for example, is the study of how light and light-matter interactions behave on the nanometer scale. See nanophotonics.
    photonics
    The technology of generating and harnessing light and other forms of radiant energy whose quantum unit is the photon. The science includes light emission, transmission, deflection, amplification and detection by optical components and instruments, lasers and other light sources, fiber optics, electro-optical instrumentation, related hardware and electronics, and sophisticated systems. The range of applications of photonics extends from energy generation to detection to communications and...
    shear
    Image distortion that occurs when the axes of the original image are not perpendicular in the resulting image, making the resulting image appear slanted. Shear can be caused by movement of the original image during scanning or misaligment of the X and Y scanners.
    van der waals
    Van der Waals forces refer to the attractive or repulsive forces between molecules (or parts of molecules) that arise from fluctuations in electron distribution. These forces are relatively weak compared to covalent or ionic bonds but play a crucial role in determining the physical and chemical properties of substances, particularly in the context of intermolecular interactions. Types of and key points about Van der Waals Forces: London dispersion forces: Also known as dispersion forces or...
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