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Updated: Apr 18, 2026

Measuring the Interaction Force Between a Droplet and a Super-hydrophobic Substrate by the Optical Lever Method
Published on: June 14, 2019
Quantum vacuum photon modes and superhydrophobicity
Louis Dellieu1, Olivier Deparis1, Jérôme Muller1
1Research Center in Physics of Matter and Radiation (PMR), Department of Physics, University of Namur, 61 rue de Bruxelles, B-5000 Namur, Belgium.
Abstract:
Nanostructures are commonly used for developing superhydrophobic surfaces. However, available wetting theoretical models ignore the effect of vacuum photon-mode alteration on van der Waals forces and thus on hydrophobicity. Using first-principles calculations, we show that superhydrophibicity of nanostructured surfaces is dramatically enhanced by vacuum photon-mode tuning. As a case study, wetting contact angles of a water droplet above a polyethylene nanostructured surface are obtained from the interaction potential energy calculated as a function of the droplet-surface separation distance. This new approach could pave the way for the design of novel superhydrophobic coatings.
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