The effect of anisotropic surface tension on the interface evolution of a particle in the undercooled melt

We study the effect of anisotropic surface tension on the interface evolution of a particle growing in the undercooled melt by using the matched asymptotic expansion method. The analytical results show that immediately after the nucleation at the initial stage of growth, the effect of anisotropic surface tension quickly leads to the remarkable interface deformation and ear-like shape formation. During such a process, some part of the interface of the particle moves inward up to a certain distance, which we call as 'the melting depth', then it starts to move outward. The melting depth induced by anisotropic surface tension provides a possibility that under some proper solidification condition the interface of the particle can split or be broken into several particles at the initial time of solidification to form more fine particles. Due to the presence of anisotropic surface tension, the ratio of surface and volume of the growing particle gains a significant increase. The result provides the prediction of the interface shape of the particle under the influence of the anisotropic surface tension. (C) 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.