Cavitation on surfaces

Entrapment of gas bubbles at the liquid/solid interface plays a crucial role for fluidic systems when the volume to surface ratio goes down. Here, we report an investigation on the presence of air on hydrophobic surfaces in water. The gas pockets on such walls are expanded, and thus made visible, by lowering the liquid pressure, a phenomenon known as heterogeneous cavitation. The investigation is extended to the study of the formation and the dynamics of bubbles generated from well controlled nuclei.