Heterogeneous nucleation of Al melt in symmetrical or asymmetrical confined nanoslits.
MD simulations are performed to study the solidification of Al melt in confined nanoslits (NSs) constructed by identical or different substrates, as well as on Fe substrates. Compared to the single substrate, the confined NS could promote the crystallization of Al melt, and its size has a significant impact on the solidified structure. In symmetrical NSs, liquid Al atoms would stack based on the atomic arrangement mode of the substrate, however in asymmetrical confined NSs, the atomic arrangement mode of liquid Al is governed by the constitution of asymmetrical substrates. Specifically, for the NS formed by Fe(110) and Fe(111) substrates, the induced region from the Fe(110) substrate is much bigger than that from Fe(111). Moreover, the freezing of liquid Al in asymmetrical NSs constructed from copper and iron has also been studied. These results throw light on heterogeneous nucleation in confined space.
Key Laboratory for Liquid-Solid Structural Evolution and Processing of Materials, Ministry of Education, Shandong University, Jinan 250061, People's Republic of China. lihuilmy@hotmail.com.
Xuyan
X
Zhou
Key Laboratory for Liquid-Solid Structural Evolution and Processing of Materials, Ministry of Education, Shandong University, Jinan 250061, People's Republic of China. lihuilmy@hotmail.com.
Sida
S
Liu
Key Laboratory for Liquid-Solid Structural Evolution and Processing of Materials, Ministry of Education, Shandong University, Jinan 250061, People's Republic of China. lihuilmy@hotmail.com.
Long
L
Wang
Key Laboratory for Liquid-Solid Structural Evolution and Processing of Materials, Ministry of Education, Shandong University, Jinan 250061, People's Republic of China. lihuilmy@hotmail.com.
Yifan
Y
Li
Key Laboratory for Liquid-Solid Structural Evolution and Processing of Materials, Ministry of Education, Shandong University, Jinan 250061, People's Republic of China. lihuilmy@hotmail.com.
Weikang
W
Wu
Key Laboratory for Liquid-Solid Structural Evolution and Processing of Materials, Ministry of Education, Shandong University, Jinan 250061, People's Republic of China. lihuilmy@hotmail.com.
Yunrui
Y
Duan
Key Laboratory for Liquid-Solid Structural Evolution and Processing of Materials, Ministry of Education, Shandong University, Jinan 250061, People's Republic of China. lihuilmy@hotmail.com.
Hui
H
Li