Quenching of lamellar ordering in an n-alkane embedded in nanopores

We present an X-ray diffraction study of the normal alkane nonadecane C19H40 embedded in nanoporous Vycor glass. The confined molecular crystal accomplishes a close-packed structure by alignment of the rod-like molecules parallel to the pore axis while sacrificing one basic ordering principle known from the bulk state, i.e. the lamellar ordering of the molecules. Despite this disorder, the phase transitions observed in the confined solid mimic the phase behavior of the 3D unconfined crystal, though enriched by the appearance of a true rotator phase known only from longer alkane chains.