Swelling and evaporation determine surface morphology of grafted hydrogel thin films

Fuente: arXiv
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Autores principales: Kopecz-Muller, Caroline, Gaunand, Clémence, Tran, Yvette, Labousse, Matthieu, Raphael, Elie, Salez, Thomas, Box, Finn, Mcgraw, Joshua D
Formato: Preprint
Publicado: 2024
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author Kopecz-Muller, Caroline
Gaunand, Clémence
Tran, Yvette
Labousse, Matthieu
Raphael, Elie
Salez, Thomas
Box, Finn
Mcgraw, Joshua D
author_facet Kopecz-Muller, Caroline
Gaunand, Clémence
Tran, Yvette
Labousse, Matthieu
Raphael, Elie
Salez, Thomas
Box, Finn
Mcgraw, Joshua D
contents We experimentally study the formation of surface patterns in grafted hydrogel films of nanometer-to-micrometer thicknesses during imbibition-driven swelling followed by evaporation-driven shrinking. Creases are known to form at the hydrogel surface during swelling; the wavelength of the creasing pattern is proportional to the initial thickness of the hydrogel film with a logarithmic correction that depends on microscopic properties of the hydrogel. We find that, although the characteristic wavelength of the pattern is determined during swelling, the surface morphology can be significantly influenced by evaporation-induced shrinking. We observe that the elastocapillary length based on swollen mechanical properties gives a threshold thickness for a surface pattern formation, and consequently an important change in morphology.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2410_05919
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Swelling and evaporation determine surface morphology of grafted hydrogel thin films
Kopecz-Muller, Caroline
Gaunand, Clémence
Tran, Yvette
Labousse, Matthieu
Raphael, Elie
Salez, Thomas
Box, Finn
Mcgraw, Joshua D
Soft Condensed Matter
We experimentally study the formation of surface patterns in grafted hydrogel films of nanometer-to-micrometer thicknesses during imbibition-driven swelling followed by evaporation-driven shrinking. Creases are known to form at the hydrogel surface during swelling; the wavelength of the creasing pattern is proportional to the initial thickness of the hydrogel film with a logarithmic correction that depends on microscopic properties of the hydrogel. We find that, although the characteristic wavelength of the pattern is determined during swelling, the surface morphology can be significantly influenced by evaporation-induced shrinking. We observe that the elastocapillary length based on swollen mechanical properties gives a threshold thickness for a surface pattern formation, and consequently an important change in morphology.
title Swelling and evaporation determine surface morphology of grafted hydrogel thin films
topic Soft Condensed Matter
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2410.05919