All metallic materials are prepared from the liquid state as their parent phase. Solidification is therefore one of the most important phase transformation in daily human life. Solidification is the transition from liquid to solid state of matter. The conditions under which material is transformed determines the physical and chemical properties of the as-solidified body. The processes involved, like nucleation and crystal growth, are governed by heat and mass transport. Convection and undercooling provide additional processing parameters to tune the solidification process and to control solid material performance from the very beginning of the production chain. To develop a predictive capability for efficient materials production the processes involved in solidification have to be understood in detail. This book provides a comprehensive overview of the solidification of metallic melts processed and undercooled in a containerless manner by drop tube, electromagnetic and electrostatic levitation, and experiments in reduced gravity. The experiments are accompanied by model calculations on the influence of thermodynamic and hydrodynamic conditions that control selection of nucleation mechanisms and modify crystal growth development throughout the solidification process.

All metallic materials are prepared from the liquid state as their parent phase. Solidification is therefore one of the most important phase transformation in daily human life. Solidification is the transition from liquid to solid state of matter. The conditions under which material is transformed determines the physical and chemical properties of the as-solidified body. The processes involved, like nucleation and crystal growth, are governed by heat and mass transport.Convection and undercooling provide additional processing parameters to tune the solidification process and to control solid material performance from the very beginning of the production chain.To develop a predictive capability for efficient materials production the processes involved in solidification have to be understood in detail.This book provides a comprehensive overview of the solidification of metallic melts processed and undercooled in a containerless mannerby drop tube, electromagnetic and electrostatic levitation, and experiments in reduced gravity.The experiments are accompanied by model calculations on the influence of thermodynamic and hydrodynamic conditions that controlselection of nucleation mechanisms and modify crystal growth development throughout the solidification process.

Containerless undercooling of drops and droplets Computer aided experiments in containerless processing of materialsDemixing of Cu-Co alloys showing a metastable miscibility gapShort range order in undercooled meltsInfluence of order in undercooled liquids on crystal nucleationCrystal nucleation in undercooled meltsPhase field crystal modelling of homogeneous and heterogeneous crystal nucleationEffects of transient heat and mass transfer and competitive nucleation on phase selection in rapid solidificationNucleation of metastable phases in undercooled meltsNucleation within the mushy-zoneMeasurements of crystal growth velocities in undercooled melts of metalsMeasurements of crystal growth in undercooled melts of semiconductorsMeasurements of crystal growth dynamics in strong external magnetic fieldsInfluence of convection on dendrite growth dynamics by AC + DC levitation techniqueDevelopment of a numerical approach for modelling dendritic growth in EML of liquid metal dropsMesoscopic modelling of dendrite growth in undercooled meltsMicroscopic modelling of growth kinetics in undercooled meltsMultiscale solidification modelling of EML processed samplesInteraction of fine particles with dendrites in undercooled melts of semiconducting materialsQuantitative analysis of alloy structures solidified under limited diffusion conditions