Elastic properties of cellular dissipative structure

Transition towards spatio-temporal chaos in one-dimensional interfacial patterns often involves two degrees of freedom: drift and out-of-phase oscillations of cells, respectively associated to parity breaking and vacillating-breathing secondary bifurcations. In this paper, the interaction between these two modes is investigated in the case of a single domain propagating along a circular array of liquid jets. As observed by Michalland and Rabaud for the printer's instability \cite{Rabaud92}, the velocity $V_g$ of a constant width domain is linked to the angular frequency $\omega$ of oscillations and to the spacing between columns $\lambda_0$ by the relationship $V_g = \alpha \lambda_0 \omega$. We show by a simple geometrical argument that $\alpha$ should be close to $1/ \pi$ instead of the initial value $\alpha = 1/2$ deduced from their analogy with phonons. This fact is in quantitative agreement with our data, with a slight deviation increasing with flow rate

Orbits and reversals of a drop rolling inside a horizontal circular hydraulic jump

We explore the complex dynamics of a non-coalescing drop of moderate size inside a circular hydraulic jump of the same liquid formed on a horizontal disk. In this situation the drop is moving along the jump and one observes two different motions: a periodic one (it orbitates at constant speed) and an irregular one involving reversals of the orbital motion. Modeling the drop as a rigid sphere exchanging friction with liquid across a thin film of air, we recover the orbital motion and the internal rotation of the drop. This internal rotation is experimentally observed.Comment: 5 pages, 6 figure

Homogeneous deposition of particles by absorption on hydrogels

When a drop containing colloidal particles evaporates on a surface, a circular stain made of these particles is often observed due to an internal flow toward the contact line. To hinder this effect, several approaches have been proposed such as flow modification by addition of surfactants or control of the interactions between the particles. All of these strategies involve the liquid phase while maintaining the drying process. However, substitution of evaporation by absorption into the substrate of the solvent has been investigated less. Here, we show that a droplet containing colloidal particles deposited on swelling hydrogels can lead to a nearly uniform coating. We report experiments and theory to explore the relation between the gel swelling, uniformity of deposition and the adsorption dynamics of the particles at the substrate. Our findings suggest that draining the solvent by absorption provides a robust route to homogeneous coatings

Constant Froude number in a circular hydraulic jump and its implication on the jump radius selection

peer reviewedThe properties of a standard hydraulic jump depend critically on a Froude number Fr defined as the ratio of the flow velocity to the gravity waves speed. In the case of a horizontal circular jump, the question of the Froude number is not well documented. Our experiments show that Fr measured just after the jump is locked on a constant value that does not depend on the flow rate Q, the kinematic viscosity ν and the surface tension γ. Combining this result with a lubrication description of the outer flow leads, under appropriate conditions, to a new and simple law ruling the jump radius RJ: RJ(ln(R∞))3/8 ∼ Q5/8ν−3/8g−1/8, in excellent agreement RJ with our experimental data. This unexpected result raises an unsolved question to all available models

Transonic liquid bells

http://www.irphe.univ-mrs.fr/~clanet/PaperFile/PHFBell.pdfThe shape of a liquid bell resulting from the overflow of a viscous liquid out of a circular dish is investigated experimentally and theoretically. The main property of this bell is its ability to sustain the presence of a ‘‘transonic point,'' where the liquid velocity equals the speed of antisymmetric—or sinuous—surface waves. Their shape and properties are thus rather different from usual ‘‘hypersonic'' water bells. We first show that the bell shape can be calculated very accurately, starting from the sonic point.We then demonstrate the extreme sensitivity of the shape of these bells to the difference of pressure across the interface, making them a perfect barometer. Finally, we discuss the oscillations of the bell which occur close to the bursting limit

Diffusiophoretic manipulation of particles in a drop deposited on a hydrogel

We report an experimental study on the manipulation of colloidal particles in a drop sitting on a hydrogel. The manipulation is achieved by diffusiophoresis, which describes a directed motion of particles induced by solute gradients. By letting the solute concentrations for the drop and the hydrogel be different, we control the motion of particles in a stable suspension, which is otherwise difficult to achieve. We show that diffusiophoresis can cause the particles to move either toward or away from the liquid-air interface depending on the direction of the solute gradient and the surface charge of the particles. We measure the particle adsorption experimentally and rationalize the results with a one-dimensional numerical model. We show that diffusiophoretic motion is significant at the lengthscale of a drop deposited on a hydrogel, which suggests a simple method for the deposition of particles on hydrogels

Zig-zag instability of an Ising wall in liquid crystals

We present a theoretical explanation for the interfacial zigzag instability that appears in anisotropic systems. Such an instability has been experimentally highlighted for an Ising wall formed in a nematic liquid crystal cell under homeotropic anchoring conditions. From an envelope equation, relevant close to the Freedericksz transition, we have derived an asymptotic equation describing the interface dynamics in the vicinity of its bifurcation. The asymptotic limit used accounts for a strong difference between two of the elastic constants. The model is characterized by a conservative order parameter which satisfies a Cahn-Hilliard equation. It provides a good qualitative understanding of the experiments.Comment: 4 pagess, 4 figures, lette

Straight contact lines on a soft, incompressible solid

International audienceThe deformation of a soft substrate by a straight contact line is calculated, and the result applied to a static rivulet between two parallel contact lines. The substrate is supposed to be incompressible (Stokes like description of elasticity), and having a non-zero surface tension, that eventually differs depending on whether its surface is dry or wet. For a single straight line separating two domains with the same substrate surface tension, the ridge profile is shown to be be very close to that of Shanahan and de Gennes, but shift from the contact line of a distance equal to the elastocapillary length built upon substrate surface tension and shear modulus. As a result, the divergence near contact line disappears and is replaced by a balance of surface tensions at the contact line (Neumann equilibrium), though the profile remains nearly logarithmic. In the rivulet case, using the previous solution as a Green function allows one to calculate analytically the geometry of the distorted substrate, and in particular its slope on each side (wet and dry) of the contact lines. These two slopes are shown to be nearly proportional to the inverse of substrate surface tensions, though the respective weight of each side (wet and dry) in the final expressions is difficult to establish because of the linear nature of standard elasticity. A simple argument combining Neumann and Young equations is however provided to overcome this limitation. The result may have surprising implications for the modelling of hysteresis on systems having both plastic and elastic properties, as initiated long ago by Extrand and Kumagai

Dewetting with conical tail formation: how to include a line friction of microscopic origin, and possibly evaporation?

Most studies of dewetting fronts in 3D with a "corner formation", as happens behind a drop sliding down an incline are based on a generalisation of Voinov theory, with (at least implicitly) a slip length at small scale. I here first examine what happens, if instead of considering a free slip at small scale, one admits a non-zero additional line friction of microscopic origin. Concerning the selection of cone angles, I show that most features of the model are unchanged, except that the "slip length" must be replaced in the equations with an "effective" cut off that can become apparently unphysically small. I suggest that these results could explain problematical cutoffs in the hydrodynamical modelling observed recently by Winkels et al on water drops. The sole difficulty with this interpretation is the law ruling the radius of curvature of the corner tip at small scale, which remains unsatisfactory. I suggest that evaporation of the liquid should also be considered at these very small scales and propose a preliminary "toy model" to take this effect into account. The orders of magnitude are better recovered without changing the structure of the equations developed initially for "classical" wetting dynamics with silicon oil drops