Characteristics of Kinetic Energy Transfer in Collisions Between Fragile Nanoparticle and Rigid Particle on Surface

The characteristics of kinetic energy transfer during a collision between a rigid target particle on a surface and a fragile bullet particle moving at a high velocity were analyzed using molecular dynamics simulation. Bullet particles made of CO₂ were considered and their size, temperature, and velocity were varied over a wide range. The fraction of kinetic energy transferred from the bullet particle to the target particle was almost independent of the former's size or velocity; however, it was sensitively dependent on its temperature, which can be attributed to the change in the bullet rigidity with temperature. This fraction was nearly twice as high for CO₂ bullets as for Ar bullets. This result explains the reason for the more superior cleaning performance of CO₂ bullets than Ar bullets with regard to contaminants in the 10 nm size range