0000000000260923
AUTHOR
H. Freimuth
The commensurate-incommensurate transition of hydrogen monolayers physisorbed on graphite
We present a neutron diffraction study of the commensurate-incommensurate (C-IC) transition of hydrogen monolayers physisorbed on the basal planes of exfoliated graphite. It is shown that the solid intermediate phase detected by specific-heat measurements can be described in terms of a striped domain-wall phase with superheavy walls. Comparison with simple models with fixed domain sizes is made. The results are in agreement with recent LEED experiments of Cui and Fain and provide an experimental realization of C-IC transition theories.
Heat-capacity and neutron-diffraction studies of HD monolayers physisorbed on graphite
Abstract The phase diagram of HD monolayers physisorbed on graphite is studied in detail by using heat-capacity and neutron-diffraction measurements. The following features are observed: At low coverages the system forms a commensurate (C) (√3 × √3)R30° phase and at coverages near monolayer completion an incommensurate (IC) two-dimensional solid phase. The order-disorder transition of the C phase belongs to the three-state Potts universality class. The C-IC transition occurs via two intermediate phases, i.e., the α phase and a novel phase, which is interpreted as an α-IC coexistence region. Though the molecule HD is a strongly incoherent neutron scatterer, for the first time elastic neutron…
Specific heat studies of ortho-deuterium monolayers physisorbed on graphite
The specific heat of ortho-deuterium monolayers physisorbed on graphite (Grafoil) has been studied in detail at about 100 coverages in the total density range below monolayer completion and at temperatures between 2 and 40 K. Several interesting new features were observed: At the completion of the commensurate 3 × 33 R30° phase the system undergoes an order-disorder transition at T = 18.1 K. This temperature turns out to be 2.34 K lower than that of para-hydrogen on graphite, which elucidates the significant influence of the quantum zero-point energy on these systems. From the heat-capacity data a value of 0.31 ± 0.02 is deduced for the critical exponent a which is in good agreement with th…