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Updated: Jul 12, 2025

Methods of Ex Situ and In Situ Investigations of Structural Transformations: The Case of Crystallization of Metallic Glasses
Published on: June 7, 2018
Two-Step Melting in a Bulk Crystal via Intermediate Metastable Liquid
Shi-Yu Liu1, Yao Yu1, Lin Liu1
1School of Materials Science and Engineering, State Key Lab for Materials Processing and Die and Mold Technology, Wuhan National High Magnetic Field Center, Huazhong University of Science and Technology, Wuhan 430074, China.
Abstract:
The mechanism of melting is significant, as it links the structure and dynamics between crystal and liquid. In two dimensions, the crystal could first melt into a hexatic liquid before finally reaching a disordered liquid. However, such a hexatic liquid phase is unstable in three dimensions, and melting is recognized as a one-step process. Here we report a two-step melting process in a three-dimensional system, (S)-(+)-ibuprofen. The crystal melts through an indirect pathway that first transforms into an intermediate liquid phase exhibiting an extremely long lifetime followed by the transition to the ordinary liquid phase at a spinodal point with the occurrence of long-range fluctuations. Such observations suggest that the complexity of liquid could affect the transition pathway of melting. These results could lead us to hypothesize the existence of continuous melting in three dimensions.
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