Nature Physics· 2026Q1
Electrification mechanisms in sliding liquid and frozen drops
- 1citations
- Q1SCImago
- 2026year
Short summary
Sliding water drops accumulate charge via at least two mechanisms: ion transfer and electron transfer, with the dominant pathway shifting based on liquid properties and phase.
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Key points
- Slide electrification involves at least two charge transfer mechanisms: ion transfer and electron transfer.
- Frozen polar compounds accumulate significant charge, indicating a mechanism beyond ion transfer.
- Non-polar liquids show similar charging in liquid and frozen states, suggesting electron transfer.
- The dominant charge transfer pathway shifts based on electronegativity, phase, and temperature.
AI-generated from the title and abstract; the full text is not read.
Abstract
Abstract The microscopic and fundamental origin of slide electrification, which happens when water drops move across insulating surfaces while accumulating and depositing electrical charges, is still debated. Charge transfer is often attributed to ion transfer at the receding contact line. However, it remains an open question whether ion transfer alone can fully account for the observed charge separation. Here we examined slide electrification of polar, self-ionizing liquids and non-polar liquids. By cooling them below the melting temperature, we were able to compare this process to tribocharging of the respective frozen components. Despite reduced ion mobility at sub-freezing temperatures, the frozen polar compounds continued to accumulate substantial charge. Non-polar liquids exhibited lower charging and nearly identical charging behaviour in both their liquid and frozen phases on different substrates. As non-polar liquids contain few free ions, these observations indicate an alternative charging mechanism, which could be electron transfer. Our findings suggest that slide electrification operates through at least two mechanisms, with the dominant charge transfer pathway shifting between ions and electron transfer depending on electronegativity, phase and temperature.
The authors' abstract, as published at the source. Nature Physics, 2026 · DOI ↗
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Field: Electrical and Electronic Engineering
Electrical and Electronic EngineeringEngineering