Nucleation in the pre-coalescence stages: universal kinetic laws

Abstract

This article is devoted to a detailed summary of recent results on the dynamic scaling of the cluster size distribution (CSD) and other universal kinetic laws in the pre-coalescence stages of nucleation and growth. A comprehensive presentation is given to the systematic approaches developed for elucidating the dynamic evolution of the CSD for sizes within the nucleation barrier layer (NBL) and beyond. In the pre-coalescence stages of nucleation and before the complete depletion of the monomer, the CSD for sizes within and beyond the NBL obey dynamic scaling relations. The dynamic scaling relations and their asymptotic limits are invariant to the size dependence of the cluster formation energy. For sizes beyond the NBL, the scaling relation of the CSD exhibits an asymptotic universal power law, the exponent of which depends only on the interphase interfacial atom transport mechanism. Comparison with limited available experimental data for sizes beyond the NBL confirms the predictions. The physical reasons behind the universal kinetic laws in the pre-coalescence stages of nucleation are outlined. The universal kinetic laws open a doorway to the systematic study of nucleation in condensed materials by providing a genera] novel foundation to guide the design of nucleation experiments and to elucidate fundamental mechanisms based on macroscopic observations of the cluster size distribution in the pre-coalescence stages of nucleation and growth.