Abstract
The solid–liquid phase transition is a very common phenomenon, whose mechanism, although much studied, is not yet understood. A study of the properties of a solid having simple structure and simple bonding near the melting and the freezing point may be useful. We report the behaviour of the dielectric permittivity in KCl, a typical ionic crystal, in the microwave region in the vicinities of the melting and the freezing point. The imaginary part of the dielectric permittivity, ε", diverges at the melting and the freezing point; the real part, ε′, varies discontinuonsly. This supports a recent theory of melting, where the density fluctuations are emphasized as the precursors of melting or freezing.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Roberts, S. & von Hippel, A. J. appl. Phys. 17, 610–616 (1964).
Boyer, L. L. Phase Transitions 5, 1–48 (1985).
Schneide, T., Brout, R., Thomas, H. & Feder, J. Phys. Rev. Lett. 16, 1423–1426 (1970).
Schneider, T. Phys. Rev. A3, 2145–2148 (1970).
Yaukalov, V. I. Phys. Rev. B32, 436–446 (1985).
Landau, L. D. & Lifshiz, E. M. Statistical Physics 2nd edn. 343 (translated by Sykes, J. B. & Kearsly, M. J.) (Pergamon, Oxford, 1968).
Stanley, H. E. Introduction to Phase Transitions and Crytical Phenomena (Clarendon, Oxford, 1971).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Tateno, J. Divergence of imaginary part of dielectric permittivity at the melting point in KC1. Nature 325, 43–44 (1987). https://doi.org/10.1038/325043a0
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/325043a0
- Springer Nature Limited