Measurement of forces and structure between fluid interfaces

The forces and structures that develop at and between fluid interfaces are responsible for the stability of foam, emulsion and wetting films. Although these forces are less studied than the interactions occurring between solid surfaces, recent quantitative studies of films created between fluid interfaces are providing new information that both complements previous findings obtained with solid surfaces, and reveals unique and important differences for films confined between fluid interfaces. Noteworthy is that fluid interfaces can be much more mobile, thus fluctuations and interfacial boundary conditions can produce a rich variety of phenomena at these interfaces. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.