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Surface wetting

Liquids shape up nicely

Nature Materials volume 6, pages 627–628 (2007)Cite this article

Decorating a surface with a forest of microposts can either make it repel water or cause it to be sucked into the spaces between posts. In the latter case, the shape of a liquid on the surface can be controlled using simple design principles.

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Figure 1: Standing in a forest of posts planted in a square pattern, we see lines of posts stretching ahead, behind and to our sides.
Figure 2: On a micropost-decorated surface, the threshold for imbibition depends on the height and separation of posts, and the strength of the wetting tendency of the liquid.

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  1. Glen McHale is at the School of Biomedical & Natural Sciences, Nottingham Trent University, Clifton Lane, Nottingham NG11 8NS, UK. glen.mchale@ntu.ac.uk,

    Glen McHale

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  1. Glen McHale
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McHale, G. Liquids shape up nicely. Nature Mater 6, 627–628 (2007). https://doi.org/10.1038/nmat1988

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