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Motion of water monomers reveals a kinetic barrier to ice nucleation on graphene

Published version
Peer-reviewed

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Abstract

Abstract: The interfacial behaviour of water remains a central question to fields as diverse as protein folding, friction and ice formation. While the properties of water at interfaces differ from those in the bulk, major gaps in our knowledge limit our understanding at the molecular level. Information concerning the microscopic motion of water comes mostly from computation and, on an atomic scale, is largely unexplored by experiment. Here, we provide a detailed insight into the behaviour of water monomers on a graphene surface. The motion displays remarkably strong signatures of cooperative behaviour due to repulsive forces between the monomers, enhancing the monomer lifetime ( ≈ 3 s at 125 K) in a free-gas phase that precedes the nucleation of ice islands and, in turn, provides the opportunity for our experiments to be performed. Our results give a molecular perspective on a kinetic barrier to ice nucleation, providing routes to understand and control the processes involved in ice formation.

Description

Keywords

Article, /639/638/440, /639/638/440/950, /639/638/542, /639/301/119/544, /639/301/357/918, article

Journal Title

Nature Communications

Conference Name

Journal ISSN

2041-1723

Volume Title

12

Publisher

Nature Publishing Group UK
Sponsorship
Austrian Science Fund (Fonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung) (J3479-N20, P29641-N36)
Royal Society (URF/R/191029)
RCUK | Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) (EP/R029431, EP/T00634X/1)