Tuning contact line dynamics and deposition patterns in volatile liquid mixtures

Abstract: The spreading of a pure, volatile liquid on a wettable substrate has been studied in extensive detail. Here we show that the addition of a miscible, non-volatile liquid can strongly alter the contact line dynamics and the final liquid deposition pattern. We observe two distinct regimes of behavior depending on the relative strength of solutal Marangoni forces and surface wetting. Finger-like instabilities precede the deposition of a sub-micron thick film for large Marangoni forces and small solute contact angles, whereas isolated, pearl-like drops emerge and are deposited in quasi-crystalline patterns for small Marangoni forces and large solute contact angles. This behavior can be tuned by directly varying the contact angle of the solute liquid on the solid substrate.