The retention of liquid by columnar nanostructured surfaces during quartz crystal microbalance measurements and the effects of adsorption thereon.

Hypothesis: A surface comprising spatially coherent columnar nanostructures is expected to retain intercolumnar liquid during a quartz crystal microbalance measurement due to the surface structure. Part of the liquid retained by the nanostructures may then be displaced by adsorbate.

Experiments: Slanted columnar nanostructure thin films were designed to vary in height but remain structurally similar, fabricated by glancing angle deposition, and characterized by generalized ellipsometry.