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Related Concept Videos

Phase Transitions02:31

Phase Transitions

22.8K
Whether solid, liquid, or gas, a substance's state depends on the order and arrangement of its particles (atoms, molecules, or ions). Particles in the solid pack closely together, generally in a pattern. The particles vibrate about their fixed positions but do not move or squeeze past their neighbors. In liquids, although the particles are closely spaced, they are randomly arranged. The position of the particles are not fixed—that is, they are free to move past their neighbors to...
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Phase Transitions: Sublimation and Deposition02:33

Phase Transitions: Sublimation and Deposition

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Some solids can transition directly into the gaseous state, bypassing the liquid state, via a process known as sublimation. At room temperature and standard pressure, a piece of dry ice (solid CO2) sublimes, appearing to gradually disappear without ever forming any liquid. Snow and ice sublimate at temperatures below the melting point of water, a slow process that may be accelerated by winds and the reduced atmospheric pressures at high altitudes. When solid iodine is warmed, the solid sublimes...
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Phase Transitions: Melting and Freezing02:39

Phase Transitions: Melting and Freezing

14.8K
Heating a crystalline solid increases the average energy of its atoms, molecules, or ions, and the solid gets hotter. At some point, the added energy becomes large enough to partially overcome the forces holding the molecules or ions of the solid in their fixed positions, and the solid begins the process of transitioning to the liquid state or melting. At this point, the temperature of the solid stops rising, despite the continual input of heat, and it remains constant until all of the solid is...
14.8K
Phase Transitions: Vaporization and Condensation02:39

Phase Transitions: Vaporization and Condensation

20.7K
The physical form of a substance changes on changing its temperature. For example, raising the temperature of a liquid causes the liquid to vaporize (convert into vapor). The process is called vaporization—a surface phenomenon. Vaporization occurs when the thermal motion of the molecules overcome the intermolecular forces, and the molecules (at the surface) escape into the gaseous state. When a liquid vaporizes in a closed container, gas molecules cannot escape. As these gas phase molecules...
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Phase Diagrams02:39

Phase Diagrams

49.5K
A phase diagram combines plots of pressure versus temperature for the liquid-gas, solid-liquid, and solid-gas phase-transition equilibria of a substance. These diagrams indicate the physical states that exist under specific conditions of pressure and temperature and also provide the pressure dependence of the phase-transition temperatures (melting points, sublimation points, boiling points). Regions or areas labeled solid, liquid, and gas represent single phases, while lines or curves represent...
49.5K
Inductance: Single-Phase And Three-Phase Line01:28

Inductance: Single-Phase And Three-Phase Line

614
Understanding the inductance of transmission lines is crucial for efficient design and operation in electrical power systems. This discussion delves into the inductance characteristics of single-phase two-wire and three-phase three-wire transmission lines with equal phase spacing.
Single-Phase Two-Wire Line:
A single-phase line consists of two solid cylindrical conductors, denoted as x and y. Each conductor carries phasor currents ix and iy, respectively. Given that the sum of these currents is...
614

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Femtosecond x-ray diffraction reveals a liquid-liquid phase transition in phase-change materials.

Peter Zalden1,2,3, Florian Quirin4, Mathias Schumacher5

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Area of Science:

  • Materials Science
  • Condensed Matter Physics
  • Computational Chemistry

Background:

  • Phase-change memory (PCM) devices utilize materials that switch between glassy and crystalline states.
  • The kinetics of crystallization are crucial for PCM technology but remain poorly understood at the atomic level.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To resolve the atomic-scale transitions in phase-change materials during melt-quenching and crystallization.
  • To elucidate the relationship between atomic structure and the kinetics of phase transitions.

Main Methods:

  • Femtosecond X-ray diffraction (fsXRD) was employed to probe atomic dynamics.
  • Ab initio computer simulations were used to model the time-dependent pair-correlation function.

Main Results:

  • A liquid-liquid phase transition was identified in Ag4In3Sb67Te26 (at 660 K) and Ge15Sb85 (at 610 K).
  • This transition is primarily driven by the onset of Peierls distortions.
  • The amplitude of Peierls distortions correlates with increased activation energy for diffusion.

Conclusions:

  • A direct link between atomic structure (Peierls distortions) and material kinetics (diffusivity) was established.
  • This understanding facilitates systematic optimization of switching kinetics in phase-change memory materials.