Kinetics of droplet condensation through a double free-energy barrier

Abstract

Results are presented for the kinetics of nucleation of liquid droplets from a one-component vapor phase on a planar lyophobic substrate patterned with a large number of easily wettable (lyophilic) circular domains. If the wettability of these lyophilic domains is characterized by a contact angle smaller than pi2, for intermediate values of the supersaturation, the condensation of a droplet on a lyophilic domain occurs through a free-energy barrier with two maxima, that is, through a double barrier. A simple model is proposed for the kinetics of droplet condensation through a double barrier that combines Kramers's [Physica (Utrecht) 7, 284 (1940)] transition rate theory with known results of nucleation theory. In the framework of this model, the solution is derived for the steady-state limit of the nucleation process. The number of lyophilic domains available for droplet condensation reduces with time as domains are occupied by droplets. The problem of droplet condensation through a double barrier is solved taking into account the effect of the time-dependent depletion in the number of available lyophilic domains.