Dynamic instability of an elastic solid sliding against a functionally graded material coated half-plane

Elastic dynamics in the stability of an elastic solid sliding against a functionally graded material (FGM) coated half-plane is investigated by examining the stability of elastic waves caused by the perturbation. The material properties of the FGM coating vary exponentially along the thickness direction. The effects of the gradient index, friction coefficient and sliding speed for various material combinations on the dynamic instability are discussed in detail. The transverse normal stresses in both coating and homogeneous half-plane are calculated and the effect of the graded coating on the stress distribution is also discussed. It is shown that the FGM coating can be used to modify sliding stabilities and control the interfacial tensile stress, and thus reduce the possibility of the interfacial contact failure simultaneously.