Interfacial Nanobubbles on Atomically Flat Substrates with Different Hydrophobicities
Abstract
Blowing nanobubbles: The morphological properties of interfacial nanobubbles immobilized on Si3N4, mica, and highly ordered pyrolytic graphite substrates partly covered by reduced graphene oxide are investigated by using PeakForce quantitative nanomechanics (PF-QNM) mode AFM. Nanoscale contact angles of the nanobubbles are correlated with the macroscopic hydrophobicity of the substrates.
Abstract
The dependence of the morphology of interfacial nanobubbles on atomically flat substrates with different wettability ranges was investigated by using PeakForce quantitative nanomechanics. Interfacial nanobubbles were formed and imaged on silicon nitride (Si3N4), mica, and highly ordered pyrolytic graphite (HOPG) substrates that were partly covered by reduced graphene oxide (rGO). The contact angles and sizes of those nanobubbles were measured under the same conditions. Nanobubbles with the same lateral width exhibited different heights on the different substrates, with the order Si3N4≈mica>rGO>HOPG, which is consistent with the trend of the hydrophobicity of the substrates.





