Adsorption at solid interfaces significantly slows evaporation and stabilizes picoliter water bridges, according to research published in Nature Communications. The study found that neither airborne vapor diffusion nor nanoscale capillarity explains how picoliter droplets endure at the microscale, where water remains confined between solid surfaces across natural and engineered systems.
Researchers deployed high-resolution X-ray imaging to directly visualize the shifting geometry of picoliter water throughout the evaporation process. Based on these observations, the authors developed a physical model separating the stabilizing effects of adsorption from those of capillarity. Interfacial adsorption proved essential to maintaining the microscale liquid bridges.
Experiments monitored microspheres measuring 266 micrometers in diameter under different imaging conditions. An X-ray microscope recorded water bridge evaporation between two contacting spheres. Optical microscopy tracked three contacting spheres whose bridge volumes oscillated at relative humidity levels above 70 percent. An ethanol wash removed the water bridges.
Gun Oh, Dohyeon Jeon, Sung Hoon Kang, and Byung Mook Weon authored the paper across Sungkyunkwan University, the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology, and Xgraphy Inc. The project developed from water physics research conducted by Giorgio Margaritondo, Yeukuang Hwu, and Jung Ho Je. South Korea's National Research Foundation funded the work alongside the KAIST Start-Up Fund and the Brain Pool Plus program. Nature Communications accepted the paper on August 25, 2026, following its initial submission on March 3, 2026.
