From adhesion to wetting of a soft particle

Abstract

Using a thermodynamical approach, we calculate the deformation of a spherical elastic particle placed on a rigid substrate, under zero external load, and including an ingredient of importance in soft matter: the interfacial tension of the cap. In a first part, we limit the study to small deformation. In contrast with previous studies, we obtain an expression for the energy that precisely contains the JKR and Young–Dupré asymptotic regimes, and which establishes a continuous bridge between them. In the second part, we consider the large deformation case, which is relevant for future comparison with numerical simulations and experiments on very soft materials. Using a fruitful analogy with fracture mechanics, we derive the exact energy of the problem and thus obtain the equilibrium state for any given choice of physical parameters.