Xu Linfeng, Cao Zetan, Liu Zhiwen, Zheng Cheng, Peng Simin, Lu Yong, Liu Haoran, Chen Bin
Center for Ultrafast Science and Technology, School of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, and School of Physics and Astronomy, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 200240, China.
Zhangjiang Institute for Advanced Study, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, 201203, China.
Nat Commun. 2025 Apr 17;16(1):3684. doi: 10.1038/s41467-025-59063-z.
Nanodroplets at multiphase interfaces are ubiquitous in nature with implications ranging from fundamental interfacial science to industrial applications including catalytic, environmental, biological and medical processes. Direct observation of full dynamic evolutions of liquid metal nanodroplets at nanoscale multiphase interfaces offers indispensable insights, however, remains challenging and unclear. Here, we fabricate gas and liquid cells containing HgS nanocrystals through electrospinning and achieve the statistical investigations of full picture of Hg nanodroplets evolving at solid-gas and solid-liquid interfaces by in-situ transmission electron microscopy. In the gas cells, the voids nucleate, grow and coalesce into the crack-like feature along the <001> direction, while Hg nanodroplets form, move rapidly on the ratchet surface and are evolved into bigger ones through the nanobridges. Distinctly, mediated by the solid-liquid interface, the liquid Hg with the ink-like feature jets in the liquid cells. Such ink-jetting behavior occurs multiple times with the intervals from several to several tens of seconds, which is modulated through the competition between reductive electrons and oxidative species derived from the radiolysis of liquids. In-depth understanding of distinct nanodroplets dynamics at nanoscale solid-gas and solid-liquid interfaces offers a feasible approach for designing liquid metal-based nanocomplexes with regulatory interfacial, morphological and rheological functionalities.
多相界面处的纳米液滴在自然界中普遍存在，其影响范围从基础界面科学到包括催化、环境、生物和医学过程在内的工业应用。直接观察纳米级多相界面处液态金属纳米液滴的完整动态演变提供了不可或缺的见解，然而，这仍然具有挑战性且尚不明确。在这里，我们通过静电纺丝制备了包含硫化汞纳米晶体的气室和液室，并通过原位透射电子显微镜对汞纳米液滴在固-气和固-液界面处演变的全貌进行了统计研究。在气室中，空洞形核、生长并沿<001>方向合并成裂纹状特征，而汞纳米液滴形成，在棘轮表面快速移动，并通过纳米桥演变成更大的液滴。明显地，在固-液界面的介导下，具有墨水状特征的液态汞在液室中喷射。这种喷墨行为会多次发生，间隔时间从几秒到几十秒不等，这是通过还原电子与液体辐射分解产生的氧化物种之间的竞争来调节的。深入了解纳米级固-气和固-液界面处不同的纳米液滴动力学为设计具有可调节界面、形态和流变功能的液态金属基纳米复合物提供了一种可行的方法。
