Polymorphic phase transition in liquid and supercritical carbon dioxide

We present experiments on molecular density fluctuations in liquid and supercritical (SC) CO₂ using small-angle neutron scattering. Thermal density fluctuations in SC-CO₂ determine susceptibility and correlation length identifying the Widom line at their maxima. Droplet formation occurs at the gas–liquid line and between 20 and 60 bar above the Widom line, the corresponding borderline identified as the Frenkel line. The droplets start to form spheres of constant radius of ≈ 45 Å and transform into rods and globules at higher pressure. Droplet formation represents a liquid–liquid (polymorphic) phase transition of the same composition but different density, whose difference defines its order parameter. Polymorphism in CO₂ is a new observation stimulating interesting discussions on the topics of gas-like to liquid-like transition in SC fluids and polymorphism since CO₂ represents a “simple” van der Waals liquid in contrast to water, which is the most widely studied liquid showing polymorphism in its supercooled state.

Thermodynamics, dynamics, and structure of supercritical water at extreme conditions

Molecular dynamics (MD) simulations to understand the thermodynamic, dynamic, and structural changes in supercritical water across the Frenkel line and the melting line have been performed.

Topological Characterization of Rigid-Nonrigid Transition across the Frenkel Line

The dynamics of supercritical fluids, a state of matter beyond the gas-liquid critical point, changes from diffusive to oscillatory motions at high pressure. This transition is believed to occur across a locus of thermodynamic states called the Frenkel line. The Frenkel line has been extensively investigated from the viewpoint of the dynamics, but its structural meaning is still not well-understood. This Letter interprets the mesoscopic picture of the Frenkel line entirely based on a topological and geometrical framework. This discovery makes it possible to understand the mechanism of rigid-nonrigid transition based not on the dynamics of individual atoms but on their instantaneous configurations. The topological classification method reveals that the percolation of solid-like structures occurs above the rigid-nonrigid crossover densities.

Anomalous behavior of nonlinear refractive indexes of CO2 and Xe in supercritical states

Direct measurement of pressure dependent nonlinear refractive index of CO₂ and Xe in subcritical and supercritical states are reported. In the vicinity of the ridge (or the Widom line), corresponding to the maximum density fluctuations, the nonlinear refractive index reaches a maximum value (up to 4.8*10^-20m²/W in CO₂ and 3.5*10^-20m²/W in Xe). Anomalous behavior of the nonlinear refractive index in the vicinity of a ridge is caused by the cluster formation. That corresponds to the results of our theoretical assumption based on the modified Langevin theory.

Dynamical crossover line in supercritical water

Dynamical crossover in water is studied by means of computer simulation. The crossover temperature is calculated from the behavior of velocity autocorrelation functions. The results are compared with experimental data. It is shown that the qualitative behavior of the dynamical crossover line is similar to the melting curve behavior. Importantly, the crossover line belongs to experimentally achievable (P, T) region which stimulates the experimental investigation in this field.