Morphological phase diagram of a spherical crystal growing under nonequilibrium conditions at the growth rate as a quadratic function of supersaturation

The complete morphological diagram of a spherical nucleus growing from a solution under nonequilibrium conditions at a local growth rate as a quadratic function of supersaturation is calculated for the first time on the basis of a linear analysis for morphological stability and the principle of maximum entropy production. The results of calculations are compared with those obtained previously for a spherical particle in the case of a linear dependence of the growth rate on the supersaturation.     

The mass transfer process and the growth rate of NaCl crystal growth by evaporation based on temporal phase evaluation

The mass transfer process and the crystal growth rate have been proved to be very important in the study of crystal growth kinetics, which influence the crystal quality and morphological stability. In this paper, a new method based on temporal phase evaluation was presented to characterize the mass transfer process in situ and determine the crystal growth rate. The crystallization process of NaCl crystal growth by evaporation was monitored in situ by a Mach-Zehnder interferometer, and the absolute concentration evolution, the evaporation rate and the real-time supersaturation of solution were obtained using temporal phase analysis, which acted as a novel technique to extract phase variation along time axis recently. Based on the evaporation rate and the absolution concentration, a new method to calculate mass transfer flux during the crystal growth without the knowledge of the mass transfer coefficient was proposed, and then the crystal growth rate could also be retrieved under the hypothesis of cubic crystals. The results show that the crystal growth rate increases with the supersaturation linearly. It is in agreement with the diffusion theories, which presume that matter is deposited continuously on a crystal face at a rate proportional to the difference in concentration between the points of deposition and the bulk of solution. The method is applicable to the research of crystallization process based on evaporation or vapor diffusion of which the precise conditions of nucleation and supersaturation are usually unknown because of the complexity of the evaporation rate and crystal growth rate.     

Kinetics of crystal growth in superfluid helium at high temperatures

The growth rate of ⁴He crystals from superfluid is measured in the temperature range 1.2–1.75 K at supersaturations up to 40 mbar. The growth rate is observed to decrease at high supersaturations: above 5 mbar in the bcc phase and above 20 mbar in the hcp phase. The temperature dependence of the kinetic growth factor K is measured in the low-supersaturation limit. In the vicinity of the superfluid transition the kinetic growth factor exhibits critical behavior: K ∝ (Tλ−T)^ε with the exponent ε=0.743±0.123. A jump in the growth factor is observed at the bcc-hcp transition point. The crystal growth kinetics problem is solved in the hydrodynamic approximation, explaining both the temperature behavior of K and the existence of the jump in the modification of the crystal structure. Zh. éksp. Teor. Fiz. 114, 1313–1328 (October 1998)     

Growth rate of potash alum crystals: comparison of silent and ultrasonic conditions

The influence of power ultrasound on the growth rate of potash alum was investigated. The experiments on growth of potash alum crystals were carried out in a stirred double jacket tank in silent conditions as well as in the presence of power ultrasound (20 kHz) at 32 degrees C, with different initial crystal sizes. It was observed that the mass growth rate of potash alum was faster under ultrasound compared to that under silent conditions. The shape was not modified by ultrasound but the size of crystals, which are grown under ultrasound, are smaller and with higher density compared to those grown under silent conditions.     

The influence of a magnetic field on the mosaic spread and growth rate of small Rochelle salt crystals

The growth rates of small (length <1 mm) crystals of Rochelle salt grown with and without a magnetic field have been measured at constant supersaturation (4%). It has been shown that some crystals grown in the presence of a magnetic field exhibit a decrease in the linear growth rate in the [010] direction relative to that shown under normal conditions. It was further noticed that a few crystals of the total number showed slight increases in growth rate. The fact that a majority of crystals showed a decrease in growth rate has given rise to speculations that this should be caused by an increase of strain (mosaic spread), resulting from a change of the mode of incorporation of the growth units into the crystal surface brought about by the applied magnetic field. The results show that most of crystals grown in the magnetic field have a higher mosaic spread and lower growth rate than observed during growth without an applied field. An increase in growth rate in the presence of the magnetic field, observed for a few crystals, might be explained by the relaxation of this strain by formation of dislocations, which in turn enhance the growth rate.     

Weakly nonlinear analysis of the morphological stability of a two-dimensional cylindrical crystal

We present the first weakly nonlinear analysis of the morphological stability of a two-dimensional cylindrical crystal growing from solution in an arbitrary regime (with the growth rate proportional to supersaturation). A quadratic (with respect to the perturbation amplitude) correction to the critical radius of a stable crystal determined in the linear theory is obtained in an analytical form and studied as a function of the per-turbation frequency and the growth regime. It is established that an increase in the perturbation amplitude vir-tually always leads to a decrease in the critical radius. Factors accounting for this nontrivial effect are consid-ered.     

Melt crystalfization and crystal morphology of two low molecular weight linear polyethylene fractions

Melt-crystallization behavior and single-crystal morphology of two low molecular weight (LMW) linear polyethylene (PE) fractions of 3900 and 5800 have been investigated. Linear growth rates along the b axis (G _b) of these fractions were measured via polarized light microscopy (PLM). The two fractions show a growth rate change at an undercooling of 17°C (at 117°C and 120°C, respectively, for these two fractions), which may be identified as the regime I/II transition. This transition does not correspond to a single-crystal morphological change from a truncated lozenge with curved (200) and (110) planes to a lenticular crystal as proposed previously. However, this morphological change can be observed at a temperature higher than the regime transition (at 122°C and 124°C), at which the cusps of the G _b data can be observed for these two fractions. Based on our morphological study via PLM, transmission electron microscopy, electron diffraction, small-angle x-ray scattering (SAXS), and differential scanning calorimetry (DSC) experiments, it is found that within a 2°C temperature region, the G _b change is accompanied by a sharp long period increase and a drastic change in single-crystal morphology from a truncated lozenge with curved (200) and (110) planes to a lenticular-shape crystal. The morphological change may result from a sudden increase in the G _b coupled with a smaller change in the growth rate along the a axis with undercooling. This implies that, within this temperature region (2°C), the crystals may undergo substantial changes in the geometry of the (110) and (200) crystal growth fronts and chain folding behavior.     

A phase-field/Monte-Carlo model describing organic crystal growth from solution

In this paper work we present a phase-field/Monte-Carlo hybrid algorithm for the simulation of solutal growth of organic crystals. The algorithm is subsequently used for an investigation of diffusion effects on the growth mechanisms. This method combines a two-scale phase-field model of the liquid phase epitaxial growth and a Monte-Carlo algorithm of the 2D nucleation and thus is faster than previous purely Monte Carlo simulations of crystal growth. The inclusion of supersaturation and diffusion in the method allows the study of crystal growth under various growth conditions. Parameters used in the hybrid algorithm are bound to the energetic parameters of crystal faces, which can be estimated from a detailed study of the actual crystal structure based on a connected nets analysis, which allows the prediction of the shape and morphology of real crystals. The study of the diffusion effect is carried out based on an example of a hydroquinone crystal, which grows from the water solution at various supersaturations. The dependencies of the growth rate and the nucleation rate on the supersaturation indicate the change of the growth mechanism from spiral growth to 2D nucleation. The difference in the growth rate for various faces is in agreement with the crystal morphologies derived from the attachment energy method and observed experimentally. The main result of the simulation is the evaluation of engineering limits for choosing appropriate external process conditions.     

Dual-shunt branch circuit and harmonic suppressed device application

The morphological manipulation, structural characterization, and optical properties of different CdSe nanocrystals were reported. Several different CdSe nanostructures, including nanowires, tetrapod crystals, and nanoparticles were grown by varying the volume ratio of triethylenetetraamine (TETA) and water (WA) in their mixed solution. By manipulating the growth driving force (i.e., the degree of supersaturation) and kinetics of the process (i.e., growth rate), the morphology and crystal structure of CdSe nanocrystals can be tailored. Growth driving force changed their morphology from nanowires to tetrapod structures and from the latter structure to nanoparticles. Moreover, kinetics of the process altered their crystal structure from wurtzite to zinc blende. The optical property of CdSe nanocrystals was investigated using UV-vis spectroscopy. The absorption edge of CdSe nanostructures showed a blue shift. CdSe nanocrystals prepared under optimized conditions showed good microstructural and optical properties for solar cell application.     

Linear stability analysis on a spherical particle growing from a binary melt under the far-field flow

The solutions of temperature and solute fields around a spherical crystal growing from a binary melt under the far-field flow are obtained.Based on the results,a linear stability analysis on the spherical interface growing from the binary melt under the far-field flow is performed.It is found that the constitutional supercooling effect ahead of the spherical crystal interface under the far-field flow is enhanced compared with that without the flow.The growth rate of the perturbation amplitude at the up-wind side of the spherical crystal interface is larger than that at the down-wind side.The critical stability radius of the crystal interface decreases with the increasing far-field flow velocity.Under the far-field flow,the whole spherical interface becomes more unstable compared with that without the flow.     

脉冲激光沉积方法制备ZnO薄膜生长参量对发光特性的影响

用脉冲激光沉积（PLD）方法在Si（111）衬底上制备了ZnO薄膜。以325nmHe-Cd激光器为光源对薄膜进行了荧光光谱分析,用X射线衍射仪（XRD）和原子力显微镜（AFM）分别对薄膜的结构和形貌进行了分析。脉冲激光沉积方法的主要生长参量为氧压、激光重复频率、生长温度和激光能量。通过控制这些参量变量,研究了这些参量对ZnO薄膜发光特性的影响,得到了用于紫外发光的ZnO薄膜生长的优化条件：发现在温度为650℃左右、氧压50Pa左右、频率5Hz左右的范围内能得到半峰全宽较窄,强度较大的紫外发光峰。分析认为紫外峰主要是由激子辐射复合发光形成的,绿光带主要和Ozn的存在密切相关,氧空位是蓝光发射的重要原因。     

细胞尺度冰晶生长行为的相场数值模拟

细胞尺度的冻结损伤机制是实施低温手术及生物材料低温保存的关键,本文围绕低温条件下的微尺度冻结问题,应用相场模型对冰晶的形成过程进行了数值模拟,明确了相场模型相关重要参数的确定方法,并最终得到各向同性条件下,二维平面内冰晶的生长过程及其生长特点.     

各向异性表面张力对定向凝固中共晶生长形态稳定性的影响

研究各向异性表面张力对定向凝固中共晶生长形态稳定性的影响.应用多重变量展开法导出了共晶界面表达式和扰动振幅的变化率满足的色散关系.结果表明,共晶生长系统有两种整体不稳定性机理:由非震荡导致的"交换稳定性"机理和由震荡导致的"整体波动不稳定性"机理.震荡有四种典型模式,即:反对称-反对称(AA-),对称-反对称(SA-)、反对称-对称(AS-)和对称-对称(SS-)模式.稳定性分析表明:共晶界面形态稳定性取决于Peclet数ε的某一个临界值ε_*,当ε大于临界值ε_*时,共晶界面形态不稳定;当ε小于临界值ε_*时,共晶界面形态稳定.随着各向异性表面张力增大,对应于AA-,SA-和SS-模式的临界值ε_(aa*),ε_(sa*)和ε_(ss*)随之减小,表明各向异性表面张力减小这三种模式的稳定性区域;然而,随着各向异性表面张力增大,对应于AS-模式的临界值ε_(as*)随之增大,表明各向异性表面张力增大AS-模式的稳定性区域.     

Dynamic pressure jump in barrier-discharge excilamps

Data for the pressure jump are used to study thermodynamic processes in barrier-discharge excilamps under the conditions of a diffuse (uniform) discharge and microdischarges. It is shown that a linear relationship between the pressure jump and excilamp radiation intensity can help to control the radiation power.     

Colloidal crystal growth at externally imposed nucleation clusters

We study the conditions under which and how an imposed cluster of fixed colloidal particles at prescribed positions triggers crystal nucleation from a metastable colloidal fluid. Dynamical density functional theory of freezing and Brownian dynamics simulations are applied to a two-dimensional colloidal system with dipolar interactions. The externally imposed nucleation clusters involve colloidal particles either on a rhombic lattice or along two linear arrays separated by a gap. Crystal growth occurs after the peaks of the nucleation cluster have first relaxed to a cutout of the stable bulk crystal.     

New developments on size-dependent growth applied to the crystallization of sucrose

The effect of crystal size on the growth rate of sucrose (C₁₂H₂₂O₁₁) at 40 °C is investigated from a theoretical and an experimental point of view. Based on new perspectives resulting from the recently introduced spiral nucleation model [P.M. Martins, F. Rocha, Surf. Sci. 601 (2007) 3400], crystal growth rates are expressed in terms of mass deposition per time and crystal volume units. This alternative definition is demonstrated to be size-independent over the considered supersaturation range. The conventional overall growth rate expressed per surface area units is found to be linearly dependent on crystal size. The advantages of the “volumetric” growth rate concept are discussed. Sucrose dissolution rates were measured under reciprocal conditions of the growth experiments in order to investigate the two-way effect of crystal size on mass transfer rates and on the integration kinetics. Both effects are adequately described by combining a well-established diffusion-integration model and the spiral nucleation mechanism.     

Radiative Instability of an Unbounded Jet Flow

The problem of the linear dynamics of disturbances of an unbounded jet flow with a piecewise linear velocity profile is considered. The stable disturbances of a flow in an incompressible medium are so-called flow waves localized near a vorticity jump. In this work, it is shown that the amplitudes of these waves slowly increase in a compressible medium due to acoustic radiation; i.e., an instability appears. The asymptotic solution to the problem for small Mach numbers is represented in terms of Airy functions. An analytic expression for the growth increment of the disturbances is obtained.     

The nature of oscillations of the crystallization front in a diluted binary melt during the initial transient process

The cause of oscillations of the crystallization rate of a binary melt that arise in the initial transient process and have been revealed earlier in numerical experiments is investigated theoretically. Within a simple time-dependent model of directed crystallization, the problem of impurity diffusion in the melt from which a crystal is drawn at constant rate is solved in a linear approximation. It is shown that, under certain conditions, the solution represents a superposition of two concentration waves, a traveling and a standing wave. The concept of a characteristic distance of directed crystallization of a binary melt is introduced. It is established that the nonmonotonic behavior of the crystallization rate during the initial transient process, in particular, its damped oscillations, is attributed to the accumulation of impurities in the melt that is excessive with respect to its distribution in the stationary regime. Impurities in the melt are accumulated excessively when the characteristic distance of directed crystallization starts to exceed the characteristic diffusion length of the impurity in the melt.     

Effect of mechanical deformations on the growth of crystals (according to atomic force microscopy data)

Nanosized morphological transformations occurring on the surface of a crystal in the area drawn by a probe needle during the growth of a scratch and the growth kinetics of crystals subjected to mechanical impact have been studied by atomic force microscopy (AFM). A series of experiments with mechanical impact on topographically different areas of a growing face (100) of a dioxidine crystal has been performed. It has been shown that even slight local contact between the probe needle and the surface on a nanoscale leads to essential crystallogenetic (morphological and kinetic) consequences, and its effect is perceptible for a long time. Among these consequences are the coarsening of stages, the appearance of great fluctuations in the growth rate of stages, the loss of morphological stability by the surface even at a distance of several tens of micrometers from the contact area, and also the phenomenon of simultaneous growth and dissolution in neighboring areas of stages.     

The instability of the surface of helium crystal in a superfluid flow

The problem on crystal growth under conditions of normal incidence of fluid on the boundary is investigated for stability. The threshold velocity of the emergence of instability is found; at low temperatures, this velocity proves to be much lower than the sound velocity. The stability is examined of the shape of cylindrical crystal in a fluid flow parallel to the crystal axis. The behavior of the atomically rough surface of crystal helium is experimentally investigated in a jet of fluid in the temperature range from 1 to 1.4 K, where the emergence is observed of an instability of the type previously predicted by Kagan, as well as by Nozieres and Uwaha. Observations reveal that, below the roughening transition, the (0001) basal face is stable in a jet of fluid.