Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 21, 2026

Induction of Microstreaming by Nonspherical Bubble Oscillations in an Acoustic Levitation System
Published on: May 9, 2021
Birth and growth of cavitation bubbles within water under tension confined in a simple synthetic tree
Olivier Vincent1, Philippe Marmottant, Pedro A Quinto-Su
1CNRS and Université de Grenoble, UMR 5588, Laboratoire Interdisciplinaire de Physique, Grenoble, F-38041, France.
Abstract:
Water under tension, as can be found in several systems including tree vessels, is metastable. Cavitation can spontaneously occur, nucleating a bubble. We investigate the dynamics of spontaneous or triggered cavitation inside water filled microcavities of a hydrogel. Results show that a stable bubble is created in only a microsecond time scale, after transient oscillations. Then, a diffusion driven expansion leads to filling of the cavity. Analysis reveals that the nucleation of a bubble releases a tension of several tens of MPa, and a simple model captures the different time scales of the expansion process.
Related Concept Videos
Excess Pressure Inside a Drop and a Bubble
Standing Waves in a Cavity
Buoyancy and Stability for Submerged and Floating Bodies
Damped Oscillations
Although friction and other non-conservative...
Rise of Liquid in a Capillary Tube
Steady, Laminar Flow in Circular Tubes

