Application of 2DMD to gaseous microflows

A two-dimensional molecular dynamics (2DMD) simulation is applied to gaseous microflows. Based on a velocity distribution function in equilibrium, the mean molecular speed, mean collision frequency, mean free path, and the dynamical viscosity are deduced theoretically. A Maxwell-type-like boundary condition for two-dimensional (2D) systems, which reveals a linear relationship between the slip length and the mean free path, is also derived. These expressions are consequently employed to investigate the rarefied gas flow in a submicron channel. The results show reasonable agreements with those by 3D simulations, and indicate that the 2DMD scheme can be very promising for the microflow researches because of its high efficiency in computation.