A microtechnique for determining the surface tension of a liquid

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Abstract
When a small liquid bridge is placed between a sphere and a flat surface, an attractive force is generated that opposes the separation of the two solid surfaces. Our detailed theoretical analysis of the phenomenon leads to a general relationship that predicts how this force depends on the surface tension and other factors. Earlier investigators have offered a simplified relationship, force = 4πRγ (where R is the sphere radius), as a possible basis for measuring the surface tension γ, which has the advantage of being independent of the amount of liquid in the bridge. This simplification will always underestimate γ, but the potential error becomes almost trivial if the amount of liquid is reduced below a critical level that will usually be in the submicroliter range. A simple procedure for obtaining reliable data with very small liquid volumes is described, and some typical results are presented.

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