Thermal interface fluctuations of liquids and viscoelastic materials

Spectra of thermal fluctuations of a wide range of interfaces, from liquid/air, viscoelastic material/ air, liquid/liquid to liquid/viscoelastic material interfaces, were measured over a 100 Hz to 10MHz frequency range. The obtained spectra were compared with the fluctuation theory of interfaces, and found to be mostly in quite good agreement, when the theory was generalized to apply to thermal fluctuations of liquid/viscoelastic material interfaces. The loss modulus of viscoelastic materials has been incorporated into the theory, and its effects observed experimentally. The spectra were measured using a system that combines light reflection, statistical noise reduction through averaged correlations, and confocal microscopy. It requires only a small area of the interface (∼1μm²), relatively short times for measurements (≲ few min), and can also be applied to highly viscous materials.