title: Controlled Uniform Coating from the Interplay of Marangoni Flows and Surface-Adsorbed Macromolecules.
abstract: Surface coatings and patterning technologies are essential for various physicochemical applications. In this Letter, we describe key parameters to achieve uniform particle coatings from binary solutions. First, multiple sequential Marangoni flows, set by solute and surfactant simultaneously, prevent nonuniform particle distributions and continuously mix suspended materials during droplet evaporation. Second, we show the importance of particle-surface interactions that can be established by surface-adsorbed macromolecules. To achieve a uniform deposit in a binary mixture, a small concentration of surfactant and surface-adsorbed polymer (0.05 wt% each) is sufficient, which offers a new physicochemical avenue for control of coatings.
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA.
authors.forename: Hyoungsoo
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kim
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA.
authors.forename: François
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Boulogne
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA.
authors.forename: Eujin
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Um
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA.
authors.forename: Ian
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Jacobi
authors.affiliation: E. Pedro Road, Phoenix, Arizona 85042, USA.
authors.forename: Ernie
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Button
authors.affiliation: Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Princeton University, Princeton, New Jersey 08544, USA.
authors.forename: Howard A
authors.initials: HA
authors.lastname: Stone