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Updated: Oct 1, 2025
08:16
Ice Generation and the Heat and Mass Transfer Phenomena of Introducing Water to a Cold Bath of Brine
Published on: March 13, 2017
14.0K
Step-bunching instability of growing interfaces between ice and supercooled water
Ken-Ichiro Murata1, Masahide Sato2, Makio Uwaha3
1Institute of Low Temperature Science, Hokkaido University, Kita-ku, Sapporo 060-0819, Japan.
Summary
Step-bunching instability (SBI) was directly observed during melt growth for the first time. This instability drives crystal growth dynamics and leads to a stable spiral growth mode.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Crystallography
- Surface Physics
Background:
- Step-bunching instability (SBI) is a phenomenon in crystal growth dynamics.
- It arises from the self-organization of elementary step flow.
- While theoretically suggested, direct observation in simple melt growth was lacking.
Purpose of the Study:
- To achieve and report the first direct, quantitative in situ observations of SBI during simple melt growth.
- To investigate the origins of SBI at the step-step interaction level.
- To understand the relationship between SBI and subsequent growth modes.
Main Methods:
- Utilized a specialized optical microscope.
- Combined microscopy with a two-beam interferometer for quantitative analysis.
- Performed in situ observations of spatiotemporal dynamics.
Main Results:
- Successfully observed the spatiotemporal dynamics of SBI in situ.
- Provided evidence for the step-step interaction as the origin of SBI.
- Demonstrated that SBI spontaneously induces a stable spiral growth mode.
Conclusions:
- Directly observed SBI in simple melt growth, confirming theoretical predictions.
- Elucidated the role of step-step interactions in SBI.
- Established SBI's role in initiating stable spiral growth, impacting late-stage crystal development.
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