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Related Concept Videos

Phase Transitions02:31

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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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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...
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Metallic bonds are formed between two metal atoms. A simplified model to describe metallic bonding has been developed by Paul Drüde called the “Electron Sea Model”. 
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Phase transitions play an important theoretical and practical role in the study of heat flow. In melting or fusion, a solid turns into a liquid; the opposite process is freezing. In evaporation, a liquid turns into a gas; the opposite process is condensation.
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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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The internal energy of a substance—the total kinetic energy of all its molecules and the potential energy of their associated forces—depends on the strength of the intermolecular forces in the condensed phases and the pressure exerted on the substance. The internal energy of a substance is the highest in the gaseous state, the lowest in the solid state, and intermediate in the liquid state. Phase transitions are caused by changes in physical conditions, such as temperature and...
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Nonthermal phase transitions in metals.

Nikita Medvedev1,2, Igor Milov3

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Finite metals irradiated with ultrafast lasers undergo nonthermal phase transitions due to electronic pressure, unlike bulk metals. This expansion-driven process leads to lattice destabilization and phase changes without thermal electron-ion coupling.

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Area of Science:

  • Materials Science
  • Condensed Matter Physics
  • Laser-Matter Interaction

Background:

  • Ultrafast laser irradiation of thick metals typically causes phonon hardening.
  • Covalently bonded materials exhibit ultrafast nonthermal melting under laser irradiation.
  • The response of finite-sized metals to ultrafast laser irradiation remains largely unexplored.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To theoretically investigate the response of finite-sized metals to ultrafast laser irradiation.
  • To determine the mechanisms driving phase transitions in metals under high electronic excitation.
  • To differentiate the behavior of finite metals from bulk metals and covalent materials.

Main Methods:

  • Theoretical modeling of laser-matter interactions.
  • Analysis of electronic pressure and lattice dynamics.
  • Simulation of phase transitions in hexagonal close-packed and cubic metals.

Main Results:

  • Finite metals, under high electronic excitation and allowed expansion, undergo nonthermal phase transitions.
  • Nonthermal transitions are driven by increased electronic pressure, leading to lattice expansion and destabilization.
  • Hexagonal close-packed metals transition to a cubic phase, while cubic metals melt.
  • These nonthermal phase transitions in metals are not ultrafast, dependent on lattice expansion.

Conclusions:

  • Finite metals exhibit unique nonthermal phase transition behavior under ultrafast laser irradiation.
  • Electronic pressure-induced lattice expansion is the key mechanism for these transitions.
  • The observed transitions differ significantly from ultrafast melting in covalent materials and phonon hardening in bulk metals.