Tear-film breakup: The role of membrane-associated mucin polymers.

Mucin polymers in the tear film protect the corneal surface from pathogens and modulate the tear-film flow characteristics. Recent studies have suggested a relationship between the loss of membrane-associated mucins and premature rupture of the tear film in various eye diseases. This work aims to elucidate the hydrodynamic mechanisms by which loss of membrane-associated mucins causes premature tear-film rupture.

Numerical simulation of dip-coating in the evaporative regime.

A hydrodynamic model is used for numerical simulations of a polymer solution in a dip-coating-like experiment. We focus on the regime of small capillary numbers where the liquid flow is driven by evaporation, in contrast to the well-known Landau-Levich regime dominated by viscous forces. Lubrication approximation is used to describe the flow in the liquid phase.

Electric-field-induced interfacial instabilities of a soft elastic membrane confined between viscous layers.

We explore the electric-field-induced interfacial instabilities of a trilayer composed of a thin elastic film confined between two viscous layers. A linear stability analysis (LSA) is performed to uncover the growth rate and length scale of the different unstable modes. Application of a normal external electric field on such a configuration can deform the two coupled elastic-viscous interfaces either by an in-phase bending or an antiphase squeezing mode.