Open AccessTheoretical evidence for a first-order liquid-liquid phase transition in gallium
Author(s) -
Diego Alejandro Carvajal Jara,
Mateus Fontana Michelon,
Alex Antonelli,
Maurice de Koning
Publication year - 2009
Publication title -
the journal of chemical physics
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.071
H-Index - 357
eISSN - 1089-7690
pISSN - 0021-9606
DOI - 10.1063/1.3154424
Subject(s) - supercooling , metastability , gallium , condensed matter physics , phase transition , phase diagram , critical point (mathematics) , latent heat , materials science , phase (matter) , character (mathematics) , thermodynamics , physics , quantum mechanics , mathematics , metallurgy , mathematical analysis , geometry
We report on theoretical results that lend support to recent experimental observations suggesting the existence of a first-order liquid-liquid phase transformation (LLPT) in gallium. Using molecular dynamics simulation based on a modified embedded-atom model, we observe a transition from a high-density to a low-density liquid in the supercooled regime. The first-order character of the transition is established through the detection of the release of latent heat and our findings suggest that the LLPT terminates in a critical point that is located in the tensile-strained domain of the metastable phase diagram. (C) 2009 American Institute of Physics. [DOI: 10.1063/1.3154424
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