1962/02/01 by N. H. Fletcher · 4 citations
Earth and Planetary Sciences · Materials Science · Physics and Astronomy · #Material Dynamics and Properties #Theoretical and Computational Physics #nanoparticles nucleation surface interactions
paper · doi:10.1080/14786436208211860
crossref issued 1962/02/01 · crossref published 1962/02/01 · crossref published-print 1962/02/01 · openalex publication_date 1962/02/01 · crossref created 2007/07/08 · crossref deposited 2019/04/30 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · crossref indexed 2026/07/27 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/29
The state of molecular orientation in a pure water surface is examined and it is concluded that the surface molecules are almost completely oriented with their negative vertices outward. Because of inter-molecular bonding this orientation decays approximately exponentially beneath the surface, the depth of orientation being about ten molecular layers. The driving energy for this orientation is supplied by the electrical asymmetry of the water molecule. When the surface of ice is examined it is found that the free energy of the system can be lowered if the ice surface is covered by a thin liquid layer. Molecules in the liquid surface are oriented, and the orientation decays in the depth of the layer. Thermodynamic calculations based on a molecular model suggest that the equilibrium film thickness is finite above a temperature of about −30°C and that the film thickness increases greatly as the melting point is approached. Typical film thicknesses are of the order of tens of Angstroms.