Stable superhydrophobic surface with hierarchical mesh-porous structure fabricated by a femtosecond laser

Inspired by the lotus leaf, a new superhydrophobic surface with hierarchical mesh-porous structure is fabricated by femtosecond laser irradiation on silicon. The fabricated surface shows a superhydrophobic character with water contact angle being found to reach up to 158^°±1^° and sliding angle of 4^°±0.5^°. The superhydrophobicity is stable even if the PH of solution changes from 1 to 14. And the surface also exhibits excellent self-cleaning effect and bouncing behavior, implying that the adhesion of the surface is extremely low. This work will enhance further understanding of the wettability of a solid surface with special surface morphology.