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Controlling droplets at the tips of fibers

Mengfei He1,2,3,*,†, Samay Hulikal1,2,*,‡, Marianna L. Marquardt1,2,4, Hao Jiang2,5, Anupam Pandey2,5, Teng Zhang2,5, Christian D. Santangelo1,2, and Joseph D. Paulsen1,2

  • *These authors contributed equally to this work.
  • †Contact author: hemf@sustech.edu.cn
  • ‡Contact author: shulikal@syr.edu
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Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 073602 – Published 14 July, 2025

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1103/43cy-32wf

Abstract

Many complex wetting behaviors of fibrous materials are rooted in the behaviors of individual droplets attached to pairs of fibers. Here, we study the splitting of a droplet held between the tips of two cylindrical fibers. We discover a sharp transition between two post-rupture states, navigated by changing the angle between the rods, in agreement with our bifurcation analysis. Depinning of the bridge contact line can lead to a much larger asymmetry between the volume of liquid left on each rod. This second scenario enables the near-complete transfer of an aqueous glycerol droplet between two identical vinylpolysiloxane fibers. We leverage this response in a device that uses a ruck to pass a droplet along a train of fibers, a proof-of-concept for the geometric control of droplets on deformable, architected surfaces.

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Corrections

24 December, 2025

Correction: A data availability statement and corresponding reference have been added.

Article Text

Supplemental Material

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Outline

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Phys. Rev. Fluids 10, 073602– Published 14 July, 2025
  • Received 5 April 2024
  • Accepted 3 June 2025
  • Corrected 24 December 2025
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