Abstract
Complete wetting of geometrically structured substrates by one-component fluids with long-ranged interactions is studied theoretically. We consider periodic arrays of rectangular or parabolic grooves and lattices of cylindrical or parabolic pits. We show that the midpoint interfacial heights within grooves and pits are related in the same way as for complete wedge and cone filling. For sufficiently deep cavities with vertical walls and small undersaturation, an effective planar scaling regime emerges. The scaling exponent is in all cases studied, and only the amplitudes depend on the geometrical features. We find quantitative agreement with recent experimental data for such systems.
- Received 11 May 2006
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.97.106102
©2006 American Physical Society