Extension of the Thermodynamics of Small Systems to Open Metastable States: An Example

By using a simplified model of small open liquid-like clusters with surface effects, in the gas phase, it is shown how the statistical thermodynamics of small systems can be extended to include metastable supersaturated gaseous states not too far from the gas-liquid equilibrium transition point. To...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences - PNAS 1998-10, Vol.95 (22), p.12779-12782
Main Authors: Hill, Terrell L., Chamberlin, Ralph V.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Integrands
Liquids
Mathematical functions
Mathematical integrals
Metastable atoms
Molecules
Physical Sciences
Physics
Series convergence
Statistical mechanics
Thermodynamics
Vapor phases
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Summary:By using a simplified model of small open liquid-like clusters with surface effects, in the gas phase, it is shown how the statistical thermodynamics of small systems can be extended to include metastable supersaturated gaseous states not too far from the gas-liquid equilibrium transition point. To accomplish this, one has to distinguish between mathematical divergence and physical convergence of the open-system partition function.
ISSN:0027-8424
1091-6490
DOI:10.1073/pnas.95.22.12779