title: Polymer nanofibers via nozzle-free centrifugal spinning.
abstract: We report on the unexpected finding of nanoscale fibers with a diameter down to 25 nm that emerge from a polymer solution during a standard spin-coating process. The fiber formation relies upon the Raleigh-Taylor instability of the spin-coated liquid film that arises due to a competition of the centrifugal force and the Laplace force induced by the surface curvature. This procedure offers an attractive alternative to electrospinning for the efficient, simple, and nozzle-free fabrication of nanoscale fibers from a variety of polymer solutions.
authors.affiliation: Max Planck Institute for Solid State Research, Heisenbergstr. 1, 70569 Stuttgart, Germany. t.weitz@fkf.mpg.de
authors.forename: R T
authors.initials: RT
authors.lastname: Weitz
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Harnau
authors.forename: S
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Rauschenbach
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Burghard
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kern