Bubbles Go Nano

With lower surface tension and gas pressure, large bubbles usually outlast their smaller counterparts. But nanoscale bubbles, like the one pictured above, can last over a year.

By covering bubbles with a mixture of glucose syrup, sucrose stearate, and water, Harvard researchers can crystallize this outer layer to form nearly impermeable shells over the bubble surfaces.

The resulting shells buckle over time into a stable pattern of five-, six-, and seven-sided areas.

This experimental study, lead by Howard Stone from Harvard's engineering school, appeared in the May 30 issue of the journal Science.

These microbubbles may one day help extend the lifetimes of common gas-liquid products that rapidly disintegrate like aerated personal-care products and contrast agents used for ultrasound imaging.

-- Greg Soltis

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Image Credit: Howard Stone Lab, Science Magazine