Drying of Soft Colloidal Films
Advanced Science, vol. 11, pp. e2406977
Abstract
Thin films made of deformable micro- and nano-units, such as biological membranes, polymer interfaces, and particle-laden liquid surfaces, exhibit a complex behavior during drying, with consequences for various applications like wound healing, coating technologies, and additive manufacturing. Studying the drying dynamics and structural changes of soft colloidal films thus holds the potential to yield valuable insights to achieve improvements for applications. In this study, interfacial monolayers of core-shell (CS) microgels with varying degrees of softness are employed as model systems and to investigate their drying behavior on differently modified solid substrates (hydrophobic vs hydrophilic). By leveraging video microscopy, particle tracking, and thin film interference, this study shed light on the interplay between microgel adhesion to solid surfaces and the immersion capillary forces that arise in the thin liquid film. It is discovered that a dried replica of the interfacial microstructure can be more accurately achieved on a hydrophobic substrate relative to a hydrophilic one, particularly when employing softer colloids as opposed to harder counterparts. These observations are qualitatively supported by experiments with a thin film pressure balance which allows mimicking and controlling the drying process and by computer simulations with coarse-grained models.
Authors 10
-
Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf
Affiliation as printed
Institut für Physikalische Chemie I: Kolloide und Nanooptik Heinrich‐Heine‐Universität Düsseldorf Universitätsstr. 1 40225 Düsseldorf Germany
-
Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf
Affiliation as printed
Institut für Physikalische Chemie I: Kolloide und Nanooptik Heinrich‐Heine‐Universität Düsseldorf Universitätsstr. 1 40225 Düsseldorf Germany
-
Technische Universität Darmstadt
Affiliation as printed
Institute for Condensed Matter Physics Soft Matter at Interfaces Technische Universität Darmstadt Hochschulstr. 8 64289 Darmstadt Germany
-
Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf
Affiliation as printed
Center for Advanced Imaging Heinrich‐Heine‐Universität Düsseldorf Universitätsstr. 1 40225 Düsseldorf Germany
-
Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf
Affiliation as printed
Institut für Experimentelle Physik der kondensierten Materie Heinrich‐Heine‐Universität Düsseldorf Universitätsstr. 1 40225 Düsseldorf Germany
-
Lomonosov Moscow State University · DWI – Leibniz Institute for Interactive Materials
Affiliation as printed
DWI‐Leibniz Institute for Interactive Materials 52056 Aachen Germany
Physics Department Lomonosov Moscow State University 119991 Moscow Russian Federation
DWI-Leibniz Institute for Interactive Materials, 52056 Aachen, Germany
Physics Department, Lomonosov Moscow State University, 119991 Moscow, Russian Federation
-
Lomonosov Moscow State University · DWI – Leibniz Institute for Interactive Materials
Affiliation as printed
DWI‐Leibniz Institute for Interactive Materials 52056 Aachen Germany
Physics Department Lomonosov Moscow State University 119991 Moscow Russian Federation
DWI-Leibniz Institute for Interactive Materials, 52056 Aachen, Germany
Physics Department, Lomonosov Moscow State University, 119991 Moscow, Russian Federation
-
Technische Universität Darmstadt
Affiliation as printed
Institute for Condensed Matter Physics Soft Matter at Interfaces Technische Universität Darmstadt Hochschulstr. 8 64289 Darmstadt Germany
-
Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf
Affiliation as printed
Institut für Experimentelle Physik der kondensierten Materie Heinrich‐Heine‐Universität Düsseldorf Universitätsstr. 1 40225 Düsseldorf Germany
-
Matthias Karg corresponding
Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf
Affiliation as printed
Institut für Physikalische Chemie I: Kolloide und Nanooptik Heinrich‐Heine‐Universität Düsseldorf Universitätsstr. 1 40225 Düsseldorf Germany
Cited by 19 stored of 19
19 results
No patents citing this paper on Lens.org (checked 2026-10-06).