Gecko Adhesion

The leg attachment padsAttachment pads of several animals are capable of attaching to and detaching from a variety of surfaces and are used for locomotionLocomotion, even on vertical walls or across the ceiling (Gorb 2001; Bhushan 2007). These include many insectsInsects, spiders, and lizards. Biological evolution has led to the optimization of their leg attachment systems. This dynamic attachment ability is referred to as reversible adhesionReversible adhesion or smart adhesionAdhesion (Bhushan et al. 2006). Many insectsInsects (e.g., beetles and flies) and spiders have been the subject of investigative interest. However, the attachment padsAttachment pads of geckos have been the most widely studied because they have the highest body mass and exhibit the most versatile and effective adhesive known in nature. Therefore, this chapter will be concerned primarily with geckoGecko adhesionAdhesion.