Enhanced stability of electrohydrodynamic jets through gas ionization

Theoretical predictions of the nonaxisymmetric instability growth rate of an electrohydrodynamic jet based on the measured total current overestimate experimental values. We show that this apparent discrepancy is the result of gas ionization in the surrounding gas and its effect on the surface charge density of the jet. As a result of gas ionization, a sudden drop in the instability growth rate occurs below a critical electrode separation, yielding highly stable jets that can be used for nano- to microscale printing.