Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 16, 2026

Simulation of the Planetary Interior Differentiation Processes in the Laboratory
Published on: November 15, 2013
Solid-solid phase transformation via virtual melting significantly below the melting temperature
Valery I Levitas1, Bryan F Henson, Laura B Smilowitz
1Center for Mechanochemistry and Synthesis of New Materials, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, Texas 79409, USA.
Abstract:
A new phenomenon is theoretically predicted, namely, that solid-solid transformation with a relatively large transformation strain can occur through virtual melting along the interface at temperatures significantly (more than 100 K) below the melting temperature. The energy of elastic stresses, induced by transformation strain, increases the driving force for melting and reduces the melting temperature. Immediately after melting, the stresses relax and the unstable melt solidifies. Fast solidification in a thin layer leads to nanoscale cracking, which does not affect the thermodynamics and kinetics of solid-solid transformation. Seven theoretical predictions are in quantitative agreement with experiments conducted on the beta-->delta transformation in the HMX energetic crystal.
Related Concept Videos
Phase Transitions
Phase Transitions: Melting and Freezing
Phase Transitions: Sublimation and Deposition
Phase Changes
A substance melts or freezes at a temperature called its melting point and boils or condenses at its boiling point. These temperatures depend on pressure. High pressure favors the denser form of the substance, so typically, high pressure...
Phase Transitions
Solid–Solid Solutions

