Denis Weaire, Stefan Hutzler and Nicolas Pittet
Physics Department, Trinity College, Dublin, Ireland
(Received December 15, 1992; Accepted January 25, 1993)
Keywords: Cylindrical Packing, Bubbles, Foam, Cells
Abstract. Bubbles of equal size, introduced into a cylindrical tube, exhibit a variety of stable structures. We have examined and categorised some of the simplest cases, in which the bubble and tube diameters are of the same order of magnitude. In all such cases so far identified the two-dimensional structure at the surface of the tube consists entirely of hexagonal cells (apart from obvious defects). Many details of these structures remain to be explained, and they may constitute a useful test-bed for computer codes designed to accurately simulate three-dimensional foams.