New Scientist: Micro-sculptures give metal the Velcro touch

5/14/04
"Minuscule shapes sculpted on metal surfaces could have a profound impact in many fields of engineering.
By training intense electron beams on the surface of metals, Bruce Dance and his team have found a way to fashion delicate metal projections that will act like ultra-strong Velcro to form much tougher joints between metals and lightweight composite materials in aircraft and cars."
Anything that lessens the need for the [environmentally] nasty adhesives.