3,000 · NEUTRAL
Smooth surface
35 µl drops, 1 mM NaCl, direct fall at 12-second intervals.
01 · The observation
Compare the shape, not just the outcome.
The slider moves both recordings to the same percentage of their duration. These are not otherwise matched trials: the neutral drop falls directly, while the charged drop first slides over PFOTS-treated quartz.
CONTROL neutral drop
CHARGED after sliding
Supplementary recordings released by the authors. They contain no speech. The slider adds only relative synchronisation; the images are unmodified.
02 · The measurement
Almost all the charge left the drop.
The Figure 2 source workbook contains 20 measurements at each position. The values below are published means, not a continuous trace of one drop.
- 1+2.037 nCafter sliding, before impact
- 2+1.837 nCrecorded at the copper connection
- 3+0.0158 nCleft in the drop after impact
0.78%
of the incoming charge remained in the drop
Deterministic calculation: 0.0158 ÷ 2.037. By difference, 99.22% left the drop; 90.2% was measured at the copper connection. This simple balance does not locate the remainder.
03 · The accumulated outcome
After 3,000 impacts, the difference was in the coating.
The target placed 35 nm of copper beneath 60 nm of Teflon AF1600. Confocal images show a smooth neutral series. Drops charged by four insulating surfaces left locally damaged areas.
3,000 · CHARGED
Local defects
Drops charged after sliding on a leaf, PVC, polystyrene, or treated quartz.
What the result supports: surface morphology changed under the tested conditions. Chemical identification of corrosion products comes from a separate, harsher test using 50,000 drops and 10 mM NaCl.
04 · The proposed explanation
The cone is visible evidence of a concentrated field.
The chain below combines observation, measurement, and the authors' interpretation. The final steps were not directly filmed at microscopic scale.
- 01
Sliding
Water and the insulator exchange charge.
- 02
Approach
Metal concentrates the field at the drop's base.
- 03
Discharge
The dielectric coating breaks down locally.
- 04
Exposure
Repeated defects let water reach the copper.
EXPLANATORY SCHEMATIC · proposed mechanism, not direct footage
05 · The boundary
A laboratory mechanism is not a real-world rate.
The study shows that slide electrification can initiate damage in the tested arrangement. It does not measure how much corrosion on buildings, vehicles, or ships is caused by charged rain.
- Volume
- 35 µl
- Salt
- 1 mM NaCl
- Slide
- about 4 cm at 50°
- Final fall
- about 5 mm
- Coating
- 60 nm Teflon AF1600
- Target
- 35 nm copper, tilted 10°
Not measured
Defect frequency, mean defect area, effects in natural rain, and contribution to field corrosion.
Supported
Charge transfer, shape change, local damage, and corrosion products in the separate 50,000-impact test.
06 · The evidence file
You can audit every decisive number.
This page uses the version of record, supplementary information, two recordings, and eight source-data workbooks. The percentage calculation is deterministic and keeps its experimental population beside the result.
- Nature articleversion of record, 26 August 2026
- Supplementary informationmethods, controls, and boundaries
- CC BY 4.0 licenceauthors credited; relative synchronisation added here
- Markdown editionthe text and boundaries without visual presentation
Study and video authors: H. Li and colleagues. Recordings are reproduced from the article's supplementary material under the article licence. This page adds labels, a relative slider, and translation; it does not alter the images.