Temperature Dependence of the Viscoelastic Properties of a Confined Liquid Polymer Measured by Using an Oscillating Optical Fiber Probe

Abstract

We measured the temperature dependence of the viscoelastic properties of a liquid polymer confined and sheared within a nanometer-sized gap. In the viscoelastic measurements, we used the fiber wobbling method, a highly sensitive method that we have developed for measuring shear forces. As a liquid sample, we used the fluoropolyether lubricant Fomblin Zdol4000. Our experimental results showed that the temperature dependence of the viscosity was well expressed by the well-known Andrade equation, even in the confined state. The activation enthalpy was calculated by assuming that Eyring's theory of viscosity holds for gaps of a width ranging from 100 nm down to a few nanometers. We observed a significant decrease in the activation enthalpy for gaps smaller than 10 nm. Elasticity, which only appeared for confinement in gaps smaller than 10 nm, roughly decreased with increasing temperature.