Introduction

The importance of surface composition and testing environment in controlling friction and wear became clear to Don Buckley of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in the 1960s (Buckley 1968a, b). He performed fundamental tribological studies using surface analytical techniques and in situ friction measurements under well-de‘ned environmental conditions. Buckley is truly the pioneer of his time, demonstrating the close interaction between surface science and tribology. Unfortunately, most surface scientists during that period were focusing their attention more on semiconductor surfaces and catalysis than tribology. It wasn’t until 1991 that the ‘rst tribology symposium was held outside traditional tribology societies. The American Chemical Society organized its ‘rst symposium on tribology (Surface Science Investigations in Tribology), involving international speakers from universities, industry, and government laboratories (Chung, Homola, and Street 1992). This symposium brought together researchers from chemistry, chemical

1.1 History ...............................................................................................................1 1.2 Impact of Tribology ..........................................................................................2 1.3 The Way Forward ..............................................................................................2 References ..................................................................................................................3