Droplets sitting on thin elastic sheets: a study with the boundary element method

IF 2.6 4区物理与天体物理 Q4 CHEMISTRY, PHYSICAL

The European Physical Journal E Pub Date : 2026-09-28 DOI:10.1140/epje/s10189-026-00620-9

Salik Sultan, Josua Grawitter, Gonçalo C. Antunes, Holger Stark

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Elasto-capillarity of a droplet wetting an elastic sheet provides an interesting system, both for fundamental and applied research. The droplet sinks into the sheet and assumes the shape of a lens. To determine the equilibrium shape in simulations, we formulate a boundary element method (BEM) extending our earlier approaches, and apply the BEM to three specific protocols for the boundary conditions of the sheet. For a clamped elastic sheet, we use various morphological metrics to demonstrate that the lens shape crucially depends on the sheet thickness. Stretching the sheet isotropically allows for an additional control parameter to influence the droplet shape and the tension in the sheet, which we quantify by radial profiles of the azimuthal and radial elastic stresses. We further demonstrate how the focal length of a liquid lens can be tuned by varying the applied tension. Finally, stretching the sheet along one direction elongates the droplet, and the sheet shows folds and dimples.

A droplet wetting a clamped elastic sheet assumes a lens shape (bottom); stretching the sheet along one direction, the droplet also elongates and the sheet shows folds and dimples (top)

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位于弹性薄片上的液滴：边界元法的研究。

液滴湿润弹性薄片的弹性毛细现象为基础研究和应用研究提供了一个有趣的系统。液滴落入薄片并呈现透镜的形状。为了确定模拟中的平衡形状，我们提出了一种边界元方法（BEM），扩展了我们之前的方法，并将BEM应用于三种特定的薄片边界条件协议。对于夹紧的弹性薄片，我们使用各种形态学指标来证明透镜形状关键取决于薄片厚度。对薄片进行各向同性拉伸，可以通过一个额外的控制参数来影响液滴形状和薄片中的张力，我们通过方位和径向弹性应力的径向剖面来量化这些参数。我们进一步演示了液体透镜的焦距如何通过改变施加的张力来调节。最后，沿着一个方向拉伸薄片会拉长液滴，薄片就会出现褶皱和凹痕。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

The European Physical Journal E CHEMISTRY, PHYSICAL-MATERIALS SCIENCE, MULTIDISCIPLINARY

CiteScore

2.60

自引率

5.60%

发文量

审稿时长

3 months

期刊介绍： EPJ E publishes papers describing advances in the understanding of physical aspects of Soft, Liquid and Living Systems. Soft matter is a generic term for a large group of condensed, often heterogeneous systems -- often also called complex fluids -- that display a large response to weak external perturbations and that possess properties governed by slow internal dynamics. Flowing matter refers to all systems that can actually flow, from simple to multiphase liquids, from foams to granular matter. Living matter concerns the new physics that emerges from novel insights into the properties and behaviours of living systems. Furthermore, it aims at developing new concepts and quantitative approaches for the study of biological phenomena. Approaches from soft matter physics and statistical physics play a key role in this research. The journal includes reports of experimental, computational and theoretical studies and appeals to the broad interdisciplinary communities including physics, chemistry, biology, mathematics and materials science.