Electrowetting

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A process where an electric field changes the contact angle of a liquid droplet on a surface, thereby altering wettability and liquid distribution on solid materials
2. An effect that modifies the interactions between a liquid and a solid surface through an applied voltage, impacting the shape and spread of the liquid
3. A phenomenon where applying an electric potential alters how a liquid droplet interacts with a surface, thus influencing its spreading and behavior

Etymology: Electrowetting is a plain compound: "electro-", the combining form from "electricity", joined to "wetting", the act of making a surface wet. The word names a technique in which applying a voltage across a droplet on a coated surface changes how far the liquid spreads, so the drop flattens or beads up on command. The electrical half is the older part of the story, since "electro-" has long been used to form words about electricity and electrical phenomena. "Wetting" is the more telling element, because it describes a property of the solid-liquid boundary rather than of the liquid alone. Combining the two produced a term for controlling that boundary electrically, which is why the word reads so directly as a description of what it does.