Super‐hydrophobic surfaces, with a water contact angle (CA) greater than 150°, have attracted much interest for both fundamental research and practical applications. Recent studies on lotus and rice leaves reveal that a super‐hydrophobic surface with both a large CA and small sliding angle (α) needs the cooperation of micro‐ and nanostructures, and the arrangement of the microstructures on this surface can influence the way a water droplet tends to move. These results from the natural world provide a guide for constructing artificial super‐hydrophobic surfaces and designing surfaces with controllable wettability. Accordingly, super‐hydrophobic surfaces of polymer nanofibers and differently patterned aligned carbon nanotube (ACNT) films have been fabricated.

Inspired by self-cleaning lotus leaves, superhydrophobic surfaces with water contact angles (CA) larger than 1508 have attracted great interest over the last few years for both fundamental research and practical applications. The fundamental mechanism of this phenomenon proposes that a combination of a hierarchical micro/nanostructure and low-[*] Prof.

Inorganic chemistryInorganic chemistry Z 0100 Super-Hydrophobic Surfaces: From Natural to Artificial -[31 refs.]. -(FENG, L.; LI, S.; LI, Y.; LI, H.; ZHANG, L.; ZHAI, J.; SONG, Y.; LIU, B.; JIANG*, L.; ZHU, D.; Adv.

A superhydrophobic ZnO thin film was fabricated by the Au-catalyzed chemical vapor deposition method. The surface of the film exhibits hierarchical structure with nanostructures on sub-microstructures. The water contact angle (CA) was 164.3°, turning into a superhydrophilic one (CA < 5°) after UV illumination, which can be recovered through being placed in the dark or being heated. The film was attached tightly to the substrate, showing good stability and durability. The surface structures were characterized by scanning electron microscopy and atomic force microscopy.

Poly(vinyl alcohol), an inherently amphiphilic material, can act as a superhydrophobic surface when deposited as nanofibers on an aluminum oxide membrane (see picture). The arrangement of the hydrophobic and hydrophilic functional groups, both in the surface and within the interior of the material, has a marked effect on surface activity.

A simple method of electrochemical deposition was adopted to prepare conductive hydrophobic zinc oxide (ZnO) thin films. The surface structures were characterized by sanning electron microscopy (SEM) and atomic force microscopy (AFM). Wettability studies revealed that the surface of the as-prepared thin films showed a contact angle (CA) for water of 128.3 ( 1.7°, whereas the superhydrophobic surface with a water contact angle of 152.0 ( 2.0°was obtained by (fluoroalkyl)silane modification. The superhydrophobic conductive thin films materials may have potential use such as microfluidic devices in the future. It is likely that other oxide materials may be similarly prepared by this method.

A multiscale architecture with interlaced submicrometer ridges and nanoprotrusions is built on a polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) surface by a combination of self‐assembly, soft lithography, and physical treatment (see picture). The multiscale structure reduces activated‐platelet adhesion under flow conditions, which is significant for the development of blood‐contacting materials.

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