Phase Separation in the Wake of Moving Fronts
Abstract
The formation of precipitate stripes in the wake of moving reaction-diffusion fronts is investigated. The NaOH+CuCl2 reaction in poly(vinyl alcohol) hydrogel yield stripes parallel or slightly oblique to the front that supplies the precursor of the precipitate. The pattern formation was modeled by phase separation described by the Cahn-Hilliard equation and reproduced by computer simulations. Pattern formation in the wake of quenching fronts has also been investigated computationally. It has been shown that below a certain front speed stripes perpendicular to the front will appear. Moreover, they will bend so that their growing end will be kept perpendicular even if the front changes its direction.
- Publication:
-
Physical Review Letters
- Pub Date:
- March 2006
- DOI:
- 10.1103/PhysRevLett.96.088305
- Bibcode:
- 2006PhRvL..96h8305H
- Keywords:
-
- 82.40.Ck;
- 64.75.+g;
- 81.07.-b;
- Pattern formation in reactions with diffusion flow and heat transfer;
- Solubility segregation and mixing;
- phase separation;
- Nanoscale materials and structures: fabrication and characterization