Related papers: Surface tension effects on immersed electrosprays
Wetting of liquid droplets on passive surfaces is ubiquitous in our daily lives, and the governing physical laws are well-understood. When surfaces become active, however, the governing laws of wetting remain elusive. Here we propose…
The origin of enhanced reactivity in aqueous microdroplets remains debated, with interfacial electric fields (IEFs) often invoked as catalytic drivers. Here, we provide a quantum-mechanical, spatially resolved characterization of the…
Polyelectrolyte (PE) brushes have ubiquitous applications as surface modifiers which regulate various structural and dynamic properties. Here, we apply a continuous-space self-consistent field theory to study the structural heterogeneity in…
A better understanding of interfacial mechanisms is needed to improve the performances of electrochemical devices. Yet, simulating an electrode surface at fixed electrolyte composition remains a challenge. Here we apply a finite electric…
Two collective properties distinguishing the thin liquid water vapour interface from the bulk liquid are the anisotropy of the pressure tensor giving rise to surface tension and the orientational alignment of the molecules leading to a…
The interaction between water and ions within droplets plays a key role in the chemical reactivity of atmospheric and man-made aerosols. Here we report direct computational evidence that in supercooled aqueous nanodroplets a lower density…
Surface stresses, in nano-sized anode particles undergoing chemomechanical interactions, have a relaxing effect on the diffusion-induced stresses thus improving the mechanical endurance of the particles, whereas, the compressive effect of…
Unprecedentedly massive electrorheology has been reported for dilute graphene nanoflakes based ER fluids that have been engineered as novel, readily synthesizable polymeric gels. Polyethylene glycol based graphene gels have been synthesized…
The electroviscous effects in the pressure-driven flow of electrolyte liquid through an asymmetrically charged contraction-expansion (4:1:4) slit microfluidic device have been investigated numerically. The mathematical model (i.e.,…
The notion that large electric fields at the air-water interface catalyze spontaneous chemical reactions has sparked significant debate, with far reaching implications for atmospheric chemistry and interfacial reactivity. Using vibrational…
Spatially varying electric fields are prevalent throughout nature, such as in nanoporous materials and biological membranes, and technology, e.g, patterned electrodes and van der Waals heterostructures. While uniform fields cause free ions…
Electrostatics in the solution phase is governed by free electrical charges such as ions, as well as by bound charges that arise when a polarizable medium responds to an applied field. In a local medium, described by a constant dielectric…
Nanodroplets on a solid surface (i.e. surface nanodroplets) have practical implications for high-throughput chemical and biological analysis, lubrications, lab-on-chip devices, and near-field imaging techniques. Oil nanodroplets can be…
From soap-covered dishes to freshly cleaned floors, surfactants can make surfaces slippery; yet, the underlying mechanism remains poorly understood. Here, we identify the molecular origin behind this ubiquitous phenomenon using macroscopic…
Extremely compliant elastic materials, such as thin membranes or soft gels, can be deformed when wetted by a liquid drop. It is commonly assumed that the solid capillarity in "soft wetting" can be treated in the same manner as liquid…
The interaction between two adjacent charged surfaces immersed in aqueous solution is known to be affected by charge regulation - the modulation of surface charge as two charged surfaces approach each other. This phenomenon is particularly…
We generalize the predictions for attractions between over-all neutral surfaces induced by charge fluctuations/correlations to non-uniform systems that include dielectric discontinuities, as is the case for mixed charged lipid membranes in…
The distribution of ions at the air/water interface plays a decisive role in many natural processes. It is generally understood that polarizable ions with low charge density are surface-active, implying they sit on top of the water surface.…
Microdischarges formed in bubbles immersed in liquids are of interest for materials synthesis and chemical conversion applications in the frame of plasma-driven electrochemistry. A key challenge associated with controlling such processes is…
Advancing open atmosphere printing technologies to produce features in the nanoscale range has important and broad applications ranging from electronics, to photonics, plasmonics and biology. Recently an electrohydrodynamic printing regime…