Abstract

Phase transformation in condensed matter is an important area of study in solid-state physics since it relates to the genesis and evolution of new microstructure. Yet the mechanisms responsible in such critical phenomena are still not fully understood. A deficiency in experimental information has left unmeasured important parameters such as the minimum number of nuclei and their critical radius for a transformation to occur as well as the velocity of the liquid-solid interface. We now report on the results of using the technique of picosecond electron diffraction¹ to observe directly the laser-induced phase transition in aluminum.

© 1984 Optical Society of America