Review of the highlights of X-ray studies of liquid metal surfaces

Abstract

Glass transition and atomic structures in supercooled GaReview of the highlights of X-ray studies of liquid metal surfaces X-ray studies of the interface between liquid metals and their coexisting vapor are reviewed. After a brief discussion of the few elemental liquid metals for which the surface Debye-Waller effect is sufficiently weak to allow measurement, this paper will go on to discuss the various types of surface phenomena that have been observed for liquid metal alloys. These include surface adsorption, surface freezing, surface aggregation of nm size atomic clusters, and surface chemistry that leads to new 3D crystalline phases. V C 2014 AIP Publishing LLC. [http://dx

Density correlation in liquid surfaces: Bedeaux-Weeks high order terms and non capillary wave background

“…The results for the cold SA surface make clear the need of the full G BW series, rather than Wertheim's proposal which has been systematically used in the attempts to extract an extended surface tension γ(q) from surface diffraction experiments, MD simulations, and DF theories. The strong surface layering of the cold SA surface is similar to that observed in X-ray diffraction of liquid metal surfaces 33,34 and enhances the role of the higher order derivatives of the density profile in BW series. The MD results for the LJ surface (or, those not shown here for the SA model at higher temperature) with monotonous density profiles may suggest that Wertheim's analysis is good enough; however, even in those systems the terms n ≥ 3 in BW series become important when the liquid surface is sampled over larger areas, as those set by the X-ray beams with L xy of several hundreds of molecular diameters.…”

“…For the SA surface, the ISM intrinsic profile with q m = 0.70/σ is still strongly layered and qualitatively different from the empirical monotonous shapes assumed in the theoretical analysis of the CWT predictions, 23 but similar to those inferred from the X-ray reflectivity data on cold liquid metal surfaces. 33,34…”

“…To push the test further, we use here the soft-alkali (SA) model, 31,32 a simple pair interaction designed to give the low ratio, T t /T c = 0.10, between the triple and critical temperatures similar to the experimental values of some liquid metals for which layered density profiles have been measured. 33,34 The results for the different contributions to G(z, z ; q) are reported in Sec. IV, analyzed in terms of γ(q), and discussed in Secs.…”

Liquid Metals in Catalysis for Energy Applications

“…2,42 Therefore, surface-structural and microscopic characteristic of LMs can be investigated using X-ray and neutron-scattering techniques. 65,66 For instance, X-rays are most commonly used for surface analysis where coherent scattering from a monochromatic and collimated X-ray beam can determine radial ion distribution on the surface of LMs as shown in Figure 5A. 42 On the other hand, scanning-electron microscopy (SEM), transition-electron microscopy (TEM), and energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX) spectroscopy are the most commonly used spectroscopic and microscopic tools for studying the morphology and composition of LMs.…”

Temperature- and potential-dependent structure of the mercury-electrolyte interface

“…Mercury is a member of the fascinating group of liquid metals, which melt at or slightly above room temperature [1]. As all liquids, their surfaces are decorated by thermally excited capillary waves (CW).…”