Droplet cluster

Droplet cluster is a self-assembled levitating monolayer of microdroplets usually arranged into a hexagonally ordered structure over a locally heated thin (about 1 mm) layer of water.

[5] Due to complex nature of aerodynamic forces between the microdroplets in an ascending jet, the droplets do not coalesce but form a close-packed hexagonal structure showing similarity with various classical and newly discovered objects, where self-organization is prominent, including water breath figures, colloid and dust crystals, foams, Rayleigh–Bénard cells, and to some extent, ice crystals.

The droplets pack near the center of heated area where the temperature and the intensity of the ascending vapor jets are the highest.

[6] It has been suggested that the phenomenon, when combined with a spectrographic study of droplets content, can be used for rapid biochemical in situ analysis.

[7] Recent studies have shown that the cluster can exist at lower temperatures of about 20 °C, which makes it suitable for biochemical analysis of living objects.

[10] In the absence of the surfactant suppressing the thermocapillary (TC) flow at the surface of the water layer, a ring-shaped cluster is formed.