Work

Cluster Incorporation and Critical Nucleus Size in Crystal Growth: Particle-Resolved Observations Using Colloidal Crystals

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: We investigate cluster incorporation and dissolution events in two-dimensional colloidal crystals using particle-resolved imaging and machine learning. Particle positions were identified from microscopy images using an object-detection method. The obtained particle positions were used to track individual particles and identify changes in cluster size. We analyzed the statistics of cluster incorporation and dissolution events as a function of the size change associated with each event. The observed event frequency is well described by the cluster size distribution. These results demonstrate that particle-resolved, machine-learning analysis can provide a quantitative approach to investigating cluster dynamics in colloidal crystallization. Furthermore, the analysis provides an estimate of the kinetic critical nucleus size. Under quasi-equilibrium conditions, we show that the kinetic critical size coincides with the thermodynamic critical size, even in the presence of a cluster-mediated growth pathway. Our experimental estimate of the kinetic critical nucleus size is consistent in order of magnitude with the thermodynamic estimate.

Source: ACS Omega

DOI: 10.1021/acsomega.6c08281

Authors: Hiroyasu Katsuno, Masahide Sato, Yoshihisa Suzuki

Institutions: Kanazawa University, Tokushima University

Language: English

Topic: Crystallization and Solubility Studies

Subfield: Materials Chemistry

Field: Materials Science

Domain: Physical Sciences

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $1,935

Funders: Hokkaido University, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science