Cavity and flow measurements of reproducible bubble entrainment following drop impacts

High-speed motion pictures of air-water interface dynamics of drop impacts that reproducibly make bubbles are presented. The pictures show previously unobserved details of the phenomenon. Measurements are compared with available computational methods. Experimental and numerical results agree with each other on the overall shape of the interface and the occurrence of bubble detachment. Measurements, however, show that the cavity depth stagnates before bubble entrapment. This behavior is not predicted by simulation. Also discussed are the presence of a jet that strikes the new bubble after formation and the possible effect of droplet surface oscillations on bubble entrainment.