Assembly at Interfaces

We study how interfacial forces can be turned into practical tools for precise assembly. Capillary forces arise when objects deform a liquid interface, creating surface-tension-driven interactions that can attract, repel, align, or organize matter. Because surface forces become increasingly important as length scales shrink, capillarity offers a scalable route for manipulating micro- and nano-scale building blocks without complex external tooling. This same physical principle underlies familiar phenomena such as the “Cheerios effect,” where floating objects cluster through interface deformation, and it has inspired broad applications in self-assembly, micromanipulation, materials fabrication, functional surfaces, and device integration.

Capillary Machines

Capillary machines convert the evolving boundary of a liquid interface into controlled forces applied to microscopic objects. Like optical tweezers, capillary machines offer a versatile platform that can move micro-particles around and even braid micro-wires. At SINANO, we are extending this idea toward higher throughput, richer topologies, and non-equilibrium processes.

Capillary Self-assembly

We use selective wetting to guide small subunits and assemble them into patterned structures via capillary forces. These studies connect the fundamental questions in soft matter, physical chemistry, fluid dynamics, and electronics with real-world applications.