Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 29, 2026

Experimental Methods for Investigation of Shape Memory Based Elastocaloric Cooling Processes and Model Validation
Published on: May 2, 2016
Relaxation of surface steps after thermal quenches: a numerical study within the terrace-step-kink model
1CONICET, Centro Atómico Bariloche, 8400 San Carlos de Bariloche, Río Negro, Argentina.
Abstract:
We study the out-of-equilibrium relaxation of surface steps after thermal quenches using numerical simulations of the terrace-step-kink model for a vicinal surface. We analyze both single and interacting steps in a situation where the temperature is suddenly changed at a given quench time. We focus on a physically relevant range of temperatures and show that the relaxation of the roughness is compatible with a power-law behavior with an effective relaxation exponent close to γ = 1/2 in all cases. This value is consistent with a one-dimensional Edwards-Wilkinson equation. In particular, this means that, although the case of interacting steps is effectively a two-dimensional system, its relaxation is dominated by short length-scale fluctuations, where steps are not interacting.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
Theories of Dissolution: The Danckwerts' Model and Interfacial Barrier Model
Reaction Mechanisms: The Steady-State Approximation
Multi-Step Reactions
Atomic Nuclei: Types of Nuclear Relaxation
In spin–lattice or longitudinal relaxation, the excited spins exchange energy with the surrounding lattice as they return to the lower energy level. Among several mechanisms that contribute to spin–lattice relaxation, magnetic dipolar interactions are significant. Here, the excited nucleus transfers energy to a nearby...
Thermal Sigmatropic Reactions: Overview
Sigmatropic shifts are classified based on an order term [i, j ], where i and j indicate the number of atoms across which each end of the σ bond migrates. Below are examples of a [3,3] sigmatropic shift in 1,5-hexadiene, referred to as...
Reaction Mechanisms: Rate-limiting Step Approximation

