Cavitation in Soft Matter

Christopher W. Barney, Carey E. Dougan, Kelly R. McLeod, Amir Kazemi-Moridani, Yue Zheng, Ziyu Ye, Sacchita Tiwari, Ipek Sacligil, Robert A. Riggleman, Shengqiang Cai, Jae-Hwang Le, Shelly R. Peyton, Gregory N. Tew, Alfred J. Crosby. PNAS (2020)

Abstract

Cavitation is the sudden, unstable expansion of a void or bubble within a liquid or solid subjected to anegative hydrostatic stress. Cavitation rheology is a field emerging from the development of a suite ofmaterials characterization, damage quantification, and therapeutic techniques that exploit the physicalprinciples of cavitation. Cavitation rheology is inherently complex and broad in scope with wide-rangingapplications in the biology, chemistry, materials, and mechanics communities. This perspective aims todrive collaboration among these communities and guide discussion by defining a common core of high-priority goals while highlighting emerging opportunities in the field of cavitation rheology. A briefoverview of the mechanics and dynamics of cavitation in soft matter is presented. This overview is followedby a discussion of the overarching goals of cavitation rheology and an overview of common experimentaltechniques. The larger unmet needs and challenges of cavitation in soft matter are then presentedalongside specific opportunities for researchers from different disciplines to contribute to the field.