Stretching, Shearing and Sliding in the Solid State

Abstract

Our laboratory has, over the years, developed a p rogramme of studies of the effect of mechanical deformation on the transport properties of solids. By applying tensile and shear stresses to metals and determining the changes in such properties as thermoelectric emf, resistivity and magnetic behaviour, we have made significant contributions to the basic physics underlying theories of the behaviour of these solids. A second line of work involved studies of the tribological behaviour of solids. We have been able to show, for the first time, that the adhesion model of fnction which was originally developed for metals can be applied, almost wholly, to polymers. In this lecture, we give a panoramic account of these experiments. ln a few concluding remarks, we point out what is probably wrong with solid state physics research in Ghana ira-a-vis; glimpses of the early development of the solid state group at the Bell Laboratories.