Abstract
A previously published model of homogeneous nucleation [Villarica et al., J. Chem. Phys. 98, 4610 (1993)] based on the Smoluchowski [Phys. Z. 17, 557 (1916)] equations is used to simulate the experimentally measured size distributions of 4He clusters produced in free jet expansions. The model includes only binary collisions and does not consider evaporative effects, so that binary reactive collisions are rate limiting for formation of all cluster sizes despite the need for stabilization of nascent clusters. The model represents these data very well, accounting in some cases for nearly four orders of magnitude in variation in abundance over cluster sizes ranging up to nearly 100 atoms. The success of the model may be due to particularities of 4He clusters, i.e., their very low coalescence exothermicity, and to the low temperature of 6.7 K at which the data were collected.
Highlights
Coalescence growth is ubiquitous in nature[1,2] and technology, being manifested in processes as disparate as homogeneous nucleation[3] and electromigration-induced production of hillocks[4] and voids[5] in metal patterns in integrated circuits
For nearly a century and a half the log-normal size distribution[6] has been employed empirically to represent distribution functions obtained from many such sources, including objects and particles produced by building-up processes and objects and particles produced by breaking-down processes
For free jet expansions dealt with here the characteristic flow time is much shorter than the time needed to reach steady state conditions
Summary
Follow this and additional works at: https://surface.syr.edu/che Part of the Chemistry Commons. Recommended Citation Chaiken, J.; Goodisman, Jerry; Komilov, Oleg; and Toennies, J. "Application of Scaling and Kinetic Equations to Helium Cluster Size Distributions: Homogeneous Nucleation of a Nearly Ideal Gas" (2006). Application of scaling and kinetic equations to helium cluster size distributions: Homogeneous nucleation of a nearly ideal gas. Goodisman Department of Chemistry, Syracuse University, Syracuse, New York 13244-4100. Peter Toennies Max-Planck-Institut für Dynamik und Selbst-Organisation, Bunsenstrasse 10, 37037 Göttingen, GermanyReceived 30 January 2006; accepted 7 June 2006; published online 18 August 2006͒
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