Solid superheating observed in two-dimensional strongly coupled dusty plasma.
It is demonstrated experimentally that strongly coupled plasma exhibits solid superheating. A 2D suspension of microspheres in dusty plasma, initially self-organized in a solid lattice, was heated and then cooled rapidly by turning laser heating on and off. Particles were tracked using video microscopy, allowing atomistic-scale observation during melting and solidification. During rapid heating, the suspension remained in a solid structure at temperatures above the melting point, demonstrating solid superheating. Hysteresis diagrams did not indicate liquid supercooling in this 2D system.
Feng
Yan
Y
Department of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Iowa, Iowa City, Iowa 52242, USA. yan-feng@uiowa.edu
Goree
J
J
Liu
Bin
B