Transferring Liquid From One Surface to Another: The Interfacial Engineering of Printing Processes

High-speed printing processes are a leading technology
for the large-scale manufacture of a new generation of
nanoscale and microscale devices. Central to all printing
processes is the transfer of liquid from one surface to
another, a seemingly simple unit operation that is still not
well-understood. We will discuss how theory and experiment
can be successfully employed to shed light on the mechanics
of liquid transfer. The insights gained suggest
strategies for engineering the interfacial behavior that
lies at the heart of the liquid transfer operation.