Shapes of Floating Liquid Zones between Solid Rods

The present paper seeks to describe the shapes of liquid floating zones between solid rods of silicon and of germanium and to discuss stability conditions. The shapes were deduced from the equation given by Laplace, $${\text{p=γ(1/R}}_1{\text{+1/R}}_2)$$ , where p indicates the pressure difference across the surface membrane of a liquid at any point, R₁ and R₂ are the principal radii of curvature at that point, and γ is the surface tension of the liquid. The floating liquid zone is analyzed within a wide stability range. Its dimensions were theoretically determined and experimentally confirmed.