In situ multi-directional liquid manipulation enabled by 3D asymmetric fang-structured surface

Abstract

Decorating surfaces with wetting gradients or topological structures is a prevailing strategy to control uni-directional spreading without energy input. However, current methods, limited by fixed design, cannot achieve multi-directional control of liquids, posing challenges to practical applications. Here, a structured surface composed of arrayed three-dimensional asymmetric fang-structured units is reported that enable in situ control of customized multi-directional spreading for different surface tension liquids, exhibiting five novel modes. This is attributed to bottom-up distributed multi-curvature features of surface units, which create varied Laplace pressure gradients to guide the spreading of different-wettability liquids along specific directions. The surface's capability to respond to liquid properties for multimodal control leads to innovative functions that are absent in conventional structured surfaces. Selective multi-path circuits can be constructed by taking advantage of rich liquid behaviors with the surface; surface tensions of wetting liquids can be portably indicated with a resolution scope of 0.3–3.4 mN m−1 using the surface; temperature-mediated change of liquid properties is utilized to smartly manipulate liquid behavior and achieve the spatiotemporal-controllable targeted cooling of the surface at its heated state. These novel applications open new avenues for developing advanced surfaces for liquid manipulation.