https://doi.org/10.1140/epjst/e2009-00950-7
Melting of thin films of alkanes on magnesium oxide
1
Diamond Light Source, Harwell Science & Innovation Campus, Chilton, Didcot, OX11 0DE, UK
2
University of Tennessee, 552 Buhler Hall, Knoxville, TN, 37996, USA
3
Institut Laue-Langevin, BP. 156, 6 rue Jules Horowitz, 38042 Grenoble Cedex 9, France
4
Oak Ridge National Laboratory, PO Box 2008, Oak Ridge, TN, 37831, USA
Recent incoherent neutron scattering investigations of the dynamics of thin alkane films adsorbed on the Magnesium Oxide (100) surface are reported. There are marked differences in the behaviour of these films, as a function of temperature and coverage, compared to similar measurements on graphite. In particular, it has previously been shown that adsorbed multilayer films on graphite exhibit an interfacial solid monolayer that coexists with bulk-like liquid, well above the bulk melting point. In contrast, these studies show that the alkane films on MgO exhibit no such stabilization of the solid layer closest to the substrate as a function of the film thickness, even though the monolayer crystal structures are remarkably similar. These studies are supported by extensive thermodynamic data, a growing body of structural data from neutron diffraction and state of the art computer modelling
© EDP Sciences, Springer-Verlag, 2009
