Thin liquid films arise in many technological applications and biological phenomena. They also present a fascinating object of study, because of a rich interplay between capillarity, hydrodynamics, interfacial transport phenomena and interfacial rheology, as well as the effects of interaction forces when films thin down to molecular thicknesses. Recent advances in experimental techniques have given further insights in the variety of physical phenomena which can occur. These techniques are briefly reviewed. How these techniques can be utilised is illustrated by recent studies in the influence of interfacial rheological stresses on drainage, the interplay between capillarity and hydrodynamics during film retraction, and the soluto-capillary stabilisation of films. Finally, we briefly discuss the challenges of conducting drainage measurements at high and varied capillary numbers and how these could be overcome by the combined use of experiment and simulations.

液体薄膜出现在许多技术应用和生物学现象中。由于毛细管现象，流体动力学，界面迁移现象和界面流变学之间存在着丰富的相互作用，以及当薄膜变薄到分子厚度时相互作用力的影响，它们也成为了一个有趣的研究对象。实验技术的最新进展对可能发生的各种物理现象提供了进一步的见解。简要回顾了这些技术。最近的研究对界面流变应力对排水的影响，薄膜缩回过程中的毛细作用与流体动力学之间的相互作用以及薄膜的溶质-毛细管稳定作用，说明了如何利用这些技术。最后，