Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Concept Videos

Capillarity in Fluid01:19

Capillarity in Fluid

Capillarity describes the movement of liquid in small spaces without external forces acting on it. The capillarity is driven by surface tension and adhesive interactions between the liquid and surrounding solid surfaces. This effect is often seen in narrow tubes, porous materials, and fine particles.
Surface tension is crucial to capillarity. It results from cohesive forces between liquid molecules at the liquid-air boundary, forming a skin that resists external forces. When the capillary tube...
Steady, Laminar Flow Between Parallel Plates01:17

Steady, Laminar Flow Between Parallel Plates

Understanding steady, laminar flow between parallel plates is essential for analyzing and designing flow in narrow rectangular channels, commonly found in various water conveyance and drainage systems. The Navier-Stokes equations govern fluid motion and are generally challenging to solve due to their nonlinearity. However, simplifications are possible in certain cases, like the steady laminar flow between parallel plates. For this scenario, we assume steady, incompressible, laminar flow.
Rise of Liquid in a Capillary Tube01:18

Rise of Liquid in a Capillary Tube

When very thin cylindrical tubes, called capillaries, are dipped in a liquid, the liquid rises or falls in the tube compared to the surrounding liquid. This phenomenon is called capillary action. Capillary action occurs due to the combination of two opposing forces: the cohesive forces of the liquid, which cause it to stick to itself and form a rounded shape, and the adhesive forces between the liquid and the walls of the container, which cause the liquid to be attracted to the container walls.
Surface Tension, Capillary Action, and Viscosity02:57

Surface Tension, Capillary Action, and Viscosity

Surface Tension
The various IMFs between identical molecules of a substance are examples of cohesive forces. The molecules within a liquid are surrounded by other molecules and are attracted equally in all directions by the cohesive forces within the liquid. However, the molecules on the surface of a liquid are attracted only by about one-half as many molecules. Because of the unbalanced molecular attractions on the surface molecules, liquids contract to form a shape that minimizes the number...
Navier–Stokes Equations01:28

Navier–Stokes Equations

For incompressible Newtonian fluids, where density remains constant, stresses show a linear relationship with the deformation rate, defined by normal and shear stresses. Normal stresses depend on the pressure exerted on the fluid and the rate of deformation in specific directions, which determines how fluid flows under varying pressures. Shear stresses, on the other hand, act tangentially across fluid layers. They explain how adjacent fluid layers slide relative to one another, connecting...
Laminar and Turbulent Flow01:07

Laminar and Turbulent Flow

Fluid dynamics is the study of fluids in motion. Velocity vectors are often used to illustrate fluid motion in applications like meteorology. For example, wind—the fluid motion of air in the atmosphere—can be represented by vectors indicating the speed and direction of the wind at any given point on a map. Another method for representing fluid motion is a streamline. A streamline represents the path of a small volume of fluid as it flows. When the flow pattern changes with time, the streamlines...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Using atomic force microscopy for physical virology: touching and manipulating single virus particles.

Biophysical reviews·2026
Same author

The tubular cavity of tobacco mosaic virus shields mechanical stress and regulates disassembly.

Acta biomaterialia·2025
Same author

Unraveling internal friction in a coarse-grained protein model.

The Journal of chemical physics·2025
Same author

Role of ultrasound in detection of lymph-node metastasis in gynecological cancer: systematic review and meta-analysis.

Ultrasound in obstetrics & gynecology : the official journal of the International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology·2024
Same author

Light Induced Inverse-Square Law Interactions between Nanoparticles: "Mock Gravity" at the Nanoscale.

Physical review letters·2019
Same author

Sectoral multipole focused beams.

Optics express·2019

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 29, 2026

An Analog Macroscopic Technique for Studying Molecular Hydrodynamic Processes in Dense Gases and Liquids
11:03

An Analog Macroscopic Technique for Studying Molecular Hydrodynamic Processes in Dense Gases and Liquids

Published on: December 4, 2017

Hydrodynamics of nanoscopic capillary waves.

R Delgado-Buscalioni1, E Chacon, P Tarazona

  • 1Depto. Física Teorica de la Materia Condensada, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Campus de Cantoblanco, Madrid, E-28049, Spain. rafael.delgado@uam.es

Physical Review Letters
|October 15, 2008
PubMed
Summary

Molecular dynamics simulations reveal nanoscopic capillary wave dynamics on liquid surfaces. Hydrodynamic theory accurately predicts wave damping until molecular scales, where diffusion dominates.

More Related Videos

Film Control to Study Contributions of Waves to Droplet Impact Dynamics on Thin Flowing Liquid Films
07:08

Film Control to Study Contributions of Waves to Droplet Impact Dynamics on Thin Flowing Liquid Films

Published on: August 18, 2018

Fabrication of Nanoheight Channels Incorporating Surface Acoustic Wave Actuation via Lithium Niobate for Acoustic Nanofluidics
07:23

Fabrication of Nanoheight Channels Incorporating Surface Acoustic Wave Actuation via Lithium Niobate for Acoustic Nanofluidics

Published on: February 5, 2020

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jun 29, 2026

An Analog Macroscopic Technique for Studying Molecular Hydrodynamic Processes in Dense Gases and Liquids
11:03

An Analog Macroscopic Technique for Studying Molecular Hydrodynamic Processes in Dense Gases and Liquids

Published on: December 4, 2017

Film Control to Study Contributions of Waves to Droplet Impact Dynamics on Thin Flowing Liquid Films
07:08

Film Control to Study Contributions of Waves to Droplet Impact Dynamics on Thin Flowing Liquid Films

Published on: August 18, 2018

Fabrication of Nanoheight Channels Incorporating Surface Acoustic Wave Actuation via Lithium Niobate for Acoustic Nanofluidics
07:23

Fabrication of Nanoheight Channels Incorporating Surface Acoustic Wave Actuation via Lithium Niobate for Acoustic Nanofluidics

Published on: February 5, 2020

Area of Science:

  • Physics
  • Surface Science
  • Computational Chemistry

Background:

  • Understanding capillary waves is crucial for fluid dynamics.
  • Existing theories often assume macroscopic scales, limiting applicability to nanoscale phenomena.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To analyze the dynamics of nanoscopic capillary waves.
  • To compare simulation results with hydrodynamic predictions at short wavelengths.
  • To identify the transition to molecular diffusion regimes.

Main Methods:

  • Utilized molecular dynamics simulations.
  • Analyzed Fourier modes of surface height from molecular positions.
  • Compared time evolution of modes with hydrodynamic theory.

Main Results:

  • Observed a transition from propagating to overdamped capillary wave modes at short wavelengths.
  • Found excellent agreement between damping rates and hydrodynamic theory down to four molecular diameters when considering wave number-dependent surface tension.
  • Identified a breakdown of surface tension hydrodynamics at smaller scales, transitioning to a molecular diffusion regime.

Conclusions:

  • Hydrodynamic theory for capillary waves remains valid at surprisingly small scales with appropriate surface tension considerations.
  • Nanoscopic surface dynamics exhibit a transition to molecular diffusion at the smallest scales.
  • Molecular dynamics simulations provide valuable insights into nanoscale fluid behavior.