Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 18, 2026

Induction of Microstreaming by Nonspherical Bubble Oscillations in an Acoustic Levitation System
Published on: May 9, 2021
Approach to universality in axisymmetric bubble pinch-off
Stephan Gekle1, Jacco H Snoeijer, Detlef Lohse
1Department of Applied Physics and J.M. Burgers Centre for Fluid Dynamics, University of Twente, PO Box 217, 7500 AE Enschede, The Netherlands.
Abstract:
The pinch-off of an axisymmetric air bubble surrounded by an inviscid fluid is compared in four physical realizations: (i) cavity collapse in the wake of an impacting disk, (ii) gas bubbles injected through a small orifice, (iii) bubble rupture in a straining flow, and (iv) a bubble with an initially necked shape. Our boundary-integral simulations suggest that all systems eventually follow the universal behavior characterized by slowly varying exponents predicted by J. Eggers [Phys. Rev. Lett. 98, 094502 (2007)]. However, the time scale for the onset of this final regime is found to vary by orders of magnitude depending on the system in question. While for the impacting disk it is well in the millisecond range, for the gas injection needle universal behavior sets in only a few microseconds before pinch-off. These findings reconcile the different views expressed in recent literature about the universal nature of bubble pinch-off.
More Related Videos
08:05Microtensiometer for Confocal Microscopy Visualization of Dynamic Interfaces
Published on: September 9, 2022
11:14A Microfluidic System with Surface Patterning for Investigating Cavitation Bubble(s)–Cell Interaction and the Resultant Bioeffects at the Single-cell Level
Published on: January 10, 2017
Related Concept Videos
Excess Pressure Inside a Drop and a Bubble
Irrotational Flow
The Buckingham Pi Theorem
Steady, Laminar Flow in Circular Tubes
Couette Flow
Gauss's Law: Cylindrical Symmetry