Matter is breaking the rules of solid and liquid
In short: We are taught that substances exist as solids, liquids, or gases. But under extreme conditions, atoms can defy this binary. Scientists have identified new states of matter where elements behave as both solid and liquid simultaneously, challenging our fundamental understanding of physical states.
Researchers at the University of Edinburgh have identified a state known as the 'chain-melted state.' By subjecting the simple metal potassium to extreme pressure and temperature, they observed a unique structure where most atoms form a solid lattice while a second set of atoms remains in a fluid arrangement. This is not a transitionary phase; high-performance computer simulations of up to 20,000 potassium atoms confirmed it as a stable state of matter.
The mechanism involves two interlinked solid lattice structures. In one lattice, strong chemical interactions keep the atoms in a solid form even when heated, while the other lattice melts into a liquid. Beyond potassium, scientists suggest that more than six substances, such as bismuth and sodium, can achieve this binary phase when certain criteria are met.
A different phenomenon occurs in two-dimensional materials. In 3D substances like ice, melting is abrupt. However, when materials are reduced to just one atom thick, they can enter a 'hexatic' phase. In this state, the spacing between particles becomes irregular like a liquid, but the angles between them remain partially ordered like a solid. While proposed in the 1970s, this was only recently confirmed in real, strongly bonded materials like silver iodide crystals protected by graphene.
These discoveries are significant because they expand the known boundaries of physics. While the chain-melted state offers potential for novel material applications, the observation of the hexatic phase resolves a decades-old mystery regarding how phase transitions work at the atomic scale.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Some Elements can be Liquid and Solid at the Same Time | SciShow News
- Also: Elements can be solid and liquid at same time | Research and innovation | The University of Edinburgh
- Also: A strange in-between state of matter is finally observed
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