Method and nebulizer for generating an aerosol having an adjustable particle size distribution

The present invention relates to a method (150) and to a nebulizer (110) for generating an aerosol (112) having an adjustable particle size distribution (160). Further, the present invention relates to a respirator for distributing the aerosol (112) having a desired particle size (160) to a human being. Herein, the method (150) comprises the following steps:a) guiding at least a portion of a stream (116) of a carrier gas (118) to a first wettable surface (120), wherein the first wettable surface (120) comprises a first liquid film (122), whereby an aerosol stream (124) is generated by detaching liquid particles (126) from the first liquid film (122);b) depositing a first portion of the liquid particles (126) from the aerosol stream (124) onto a further wettable surface (128), whereby a further liquid film (130) is formed on the further wettable surface (128);c) detaching a further portion of the liquid particles (126) from the further liquid film (130) formed on the further wettable surface (128) back to the aerosol stream (124);d) repeating steps b) and c) until the adjustable particle size distribution (160) is obtained.The method (150) and the nebulizer (110) are capable of generating liquid particles (126) having a mass median aerodynamic diameter (MMAD) of 2 µm or below, preferably of approx. 1.5 µm, thus allowing an application of the aerosol (112) also to babies, neonates and preterm neonates.