Atomic Trajectories in Liquid Films Driven over a Substrate*

The dynamics of Lennard-Jones liquid films forced over a solid substrate is presented. At low forces the majority of atoms remain stationary in their equilibrium positions, while a small percentage of atoms propagate as nonlinear waves over the substrate. Atoms do not follow the direction of the external driving force. In a solution, different species of atoms follow different directions from one another, resulting in the solute atoms partitioning from one another and from the solvent. We aim to apply new knowledge of the physics of the liquid-solid interfaces for developing molecular-level separation mechanisms mediated by solid substrates.