Effective three-dimensional superhydrophobic channel coating using organically modified silica aerogel

Superhydrophobic coating inside a three-dimensional (3D) channel has been considered an important process to enhance the performance of various microfluidic systems. However, the coating usually requires complex fabrication processes and is difficult to adapt to the 3D channel. In this paper, we propose a dramatically simplified yet effective way to coat inside of the 3D channel using organically modified silica aerogel. The superhydrophobicity which has high contact angle (CA) and low contact angle hysteresis (CAH) is successfully achieved. In addition, receding characteristics on the point of triple phase contact line (TPCL) were examined by observing contact line movement.