Abstract

We consider the effect of van der Waals intermolecular forces on instability problems occurring in thin liquid film pattern formation induced by an electric field. The physical setup is a layer of thin liquid film sandwiched between two electrodes and separated by an air gap from the top mask electrode. We formulate the nonlinear parabolic fourth order thin film equation by deriving van der Waals forces, electric induced forces and incorporate the surface tension in the model. In the long wavelength limit, we find that perturbations at the interface undergo regulated dynamics and the initial film thickness plays a critical role in the pattern formation process.

Citation details of the article

Journal: International Journal of Applied Mathematics
Journal ISSN (Print): ISSN 1311-1728
Journal ISSN (Electronic): ISSN 1314-8060
Volume: 31
Issue: 2
Year: 2018

DOI: 10.12732/ijam.v31i2.1

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