Mizuki Tenjimbayashi

We study the structure and dynamics of interfaces based on fundamental physical laws. A major topic is the modulation of wettability via engineered nanostructured surfaces and interfaces. Wetting is ubiquitous in nature and industry. Thus, understanding wetting dynamics enables the design of biomimetic materials, wet processing, and functional interfaces. We mainly focus on the design of liquid-repellent materials for liquid manipulation without adhesion loss.

Our current topic is to suggest general strategies for small-droplet manipulation. [1-4] Classically, various liquid repellent technologies have been reported to manipulate droplets. The minimum manipulatable volume without sticking is typically in the microliter range because the droplet becomes sensitive to the contacting substrate. Our breakthrough is the manipulation of picoliter- to nanoliter-volume droplets without sticking, which are four magnitudes smaller than classical ones, by designing a nanomicro hierarchical structure around the droplet. [ 1 ] Based on this liquid-repellent design, we achieved the programmed droplet assembly and transport as shown in the figure.