Nonisothermal nucleation in the CuCl solid solution in glass: Nucleation under continuous cooling of the solid solution

Abstract

The processes of nonisothermal nucleation in the CuCl solid solution in glass under continuous cooling from 700 to 500°C have been investigated. It has been shown that, in the studied cooling modes, regardless of the cooling rate, two distributions of CuCl nanoparticles with radii in the ranges of 8–20 and 2.5–3.5 nm in the absence of particles with intermediate radii are formed. The simulation of the nucleation under continuous cooling of the solid solution has revealed some features in the kinetics of the formation of two distributions of nanoparticles that differ significantly in size. It has been found that, under specific conditions, there can arise one wide distribution (strongly overlapping distributions). The role of a change in the critical radius during the nonisothermal nucleation (cooling of the solid solution) in the formation of a binary distribution has been demonstrated.