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Updated: Mar 22, 2026

Light-induced Patterning and Grafting for Slippery Surfaces based on Silane-coated Nanoporous Structures
Published on: November 14, 2025
Local Flow Field and Slip Length of Superhydrophobic Surfaces
David Schäffel1, Kaloian Koynov1, Doris Vollmer1
1Max Planck Institute for Polymer Research, 55128 Mainz, Germany.
Abstract:
While the global slippage of water past superhydrophobic surfaces has attracted wide interest, the local distribution of slip still remains unclear. Using fluorescence correlation spectroscopy, we performed detailed measurements of the local flow field and slip length for water in the Cassie state on a microstructured superhydrophobic surface. We revealed that the local slip length is finite, nonconstant, anisotropic, and sensitive to the presence of surfactants. In combination with numerical calculations of the flow, we can explain all these properties by the local hydrodynamics.
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