Journal
PHYSICAL REVIEW LETTERS
Volume 108, Issue 7, Pages -Publisher
AMER PHYSICAL SOC
DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.108.074503
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Funding
- NSF [DMR-10006546]
- Harvard MRSEC [DMR-0820484]
- Harvard Kavli Institute for Bio-nano-science and Technology
- NDSEG
- Yad Hanadiv Rothschild Foundation
- MacArthur Foundation
- Division Of Materials Research
- Direct For Mathematical & Physical Scien [820484] Funding Source: National Science Foundation
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The commonly accepted description of drops impacting on a surface typically ignores the essential role of the air that is trapped between the impacting drop and the surface. Here we describe a new imaging modality that is sensitive to the behavior right at the surface. We show that a very thin film of air, only a few tens of nanometers thick, remains trapped between the falling drop and the surface as the drop spreads. The thin film of air serves to lubricate the drop enabling the fluid to skate on the air film laterally outward at surprisingly high velocities, consistent with theoretical predictions. Eventually this thin film of air breaks down as the fluid wets the surface via a spinodal-like mechanism. Our results show that the dynamics of impacting drops are much more complex than previously thought, with a rich array of unexpected phenomena that require rethinking classic paradigms.
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