2005/04/09 by U. Tartaglino, T. Zykova-Timan, F. Ercolessi +1 · 5 citations
Chemistry · Earth and Planetary Sciences · Materials Science · Physics and Astronomy · #Advanced Physical and Chemical Molecular Interactions #Material Dynamics and Properties #cond-mat.mtrl-sci #nanoparticles nucleation surface interactions
paper · pdf · doi:10.1016/j.physrep.2005.01.004
published as Phys.Rep. 411 (2005) 291 · 54 pages, 26 figures
openalex publication_date 2005/04/09 · arxiv created 2005/08/03 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2016/06/24 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/28
We present an extensive but concise review of our present understanding, largely based on theory and simulation work from our group, on the equilibrium behavior of solid surfaces and nanosystems close to the bulk melting point. In the first part we define phenomena, in particular surface melting and nonmelting, and review some related theoretical approaches, from heuristic theories to computer simulation. In the second part we describe the surface melting/nonmelting behavior of several different classes of solids, ranging from van der Waals crystals, to valence semiconductors, to ionic crystals and metals. In the third part, we address special cases such as strained solids, the defreezing of glass surfaces, and rotational surface melting. Next, we digress briefly to surface layering of a liquid metal, possibly leading to solid-like or hexatic two dimensional phases floating on the liquid. In the final part, the relationship of surface melting to the premelting of nanoclusters and nanowires is reviewed.