Khellil Sefiane

Introduction Click to copy section linkSection link copied! Microscale droplet migration has been investigated using different activation or functional approaches, which include passive ones such as chemical (1,2) and/or structural gradients (3,4) on the surface, or active ones such as electrowetting, (5) vibration, (6) light, (7) thermal gradient, (8) etc.

While inkjet printing on many hydrophilic surfaces can be achieved through control of drop spacing and droplet deposition delay alone, the same for hydrophobic substrates prove to be challenging. The low surface energies of hydrophobic surfaces lead to dewetting, unwanted coalescence of wet drops, and bulging, preventing intact and uniform lines of low-viscosity ink to form.