Flow-induced stripe pattern formation in phase-separating fluids

We demonstrated that the introduction of a temperature gradient along the free surface induces a particular stripe pattern in phase-separating fluids. The horizontal temperature gradient drove lateral-periodic spiral liquid motion flowing from warmer to cooler places due to thermocapillarity. Properly chosen polymer compositions and initial film thicknesses in ternary solutions allowed us to promote a phase separation in the presence of spiral flow, which assembled the demixed polymer droplets along the flow-stagnation lines. The resulting assembled phases aligned in the temperature gradient direction and eventually formed periodic polymer stripes involving the same spacing as that of the flow axis. The critical condition for the stripe pattern formation was given by the ratio of two relevant film thicknesses, i.e. the thickness for the onset of the phase separation and that for the cessation of liquid motion.