Study of fluid dynamics at the boundary wall of a microchannel by Bloch surface waves

Understanding how a fluid flows at the boundaries when it is confined at the microscale/nanoscale is crucial for a broad range of engineering and biology applications. We propose an experimental technique based on Bloch surface waves sustained by a one-dimensional photonic crystal to evaluate the speed of the contact line, i.e., the triple junction separating three phases, in the low Reynold’s number regime, and with a nanometric resolution. Here, we report on the experimental characterization of the translatory motion of the contact line that separates two water solutions with a relatively high refractive index mismatch (7.35×10−3) and its slipping over a solid surface. The advantages are the relative simplicity and economy of the experimental configuration.