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Wetting Properties Of Structured Interfaces Composed Of Surface-Attached Spherical Nanoparticles, Bishal Bhattarai

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In this thesis, the effects of the external pressure and surface energy on stability and wetting transition at nanotextured interfaces are studied using molecular dynamics and continuum simulations. The surface roughness of the composite interface is modeled via an array of spherical nanoparticles with controlled wettability. It was found that in the absence of external pressure, the liquid interface is flat and its location relative to the solid substrate is determined by the radius of the particle and the local contact angle. With increasing pressure on the liquid film, its interface becomes more curved and the three-phase contact line is …