Abstract
We study the stability of soap films of a nonionic surfactant under different applied capillary pressures on the film. Depending on the pressure, either a thick common black film (CBF), or a microscopically thin Newton black film (NBF) is formed as a (metastable) equilibrium state, with a first-order (discontinuous) transition between the two. Studying the dynamics of the CBF-NBF transition, it is found that under certain conditions a hysteresis for the transition is observed: for a given range of pressures, either of the two states may be observed. We quantify the nucleation process that is at the basis of these observations both experimentally and theoretically.
Original language | English |
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Pages (from-to) | 0483021-0483024 |
Number of pages | 4 |
Journal | Physical Review Letters |
Volume | 90 |
Issue number | 4 |
Publication status | Published - Jan 2003 |