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Updated: Jul 6, 2026

Orientational Transition in a Liquid Crystal Triggered by the Thermodynamic Growth of Interfacial Wetting Sheets
Published on: May 15, 2017
Dynamic theory of crystallization in Ge2Sb2.3Te5 phase-change optical recording media
E M Wright1, P K Khulbe, M Mansuripur
1Optical Sciences Center, University of Arizona, Tucson, Arizona 85721, USA.
Abstract:
We develop a theory of the crystallization dynamics of Ge(2)Sb(2.3)Te(5) thin films that shows good qualitative agreement with experimental reflectivity results from a two-laser static tester. The theory is adapted from the nucleation theory of liquid droplets from supersaturated vapor and elucidates the physics underlying the amorphous-to-crystalline phase transformation under short-pulse excitation. In particular, the theory provides a physical picture in which crystalline islands, or basic embryos, are thermally activated in the amorphous material and subsequently grow as stable nuclei are formed.
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