Structure a new dimension to surface tailoring

While the chemical composition of a surface is clearly important in determining its properties, the topographical structure of surfaces, from the atomic up to the micrometer scale, can have an additional, but in many cases very significant, effect 

On the atomic level, this is clearly observed in many catalytic reactions on metal surfaces, where the crystal face of the metal concerned can greatly influence the catalyzed rate of reaction (see Chapter 3a). One of the most significant effects of 

Adhesion and friction are also dependent on surface structure in the sense of roughness, although the effect can be difficult to predict. Frictional forces often contain an adhesive component, which tends to decrease as roughness increases, but 

Barthlott, C. Neinhuis. The Purity of Seicred Lotus or Escape From Contamination in Biological Surfaces, Planta (f997) Vol. 202 pp. 1-8. 

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