Heat Transfer Processes at Early Stages of Crystal Nucleation in Glass-Forming Materials and Polymers

Local thermal perturbations in supercooled glass-forming liquids during the nucleation and decay of nuclei of the crystalline phase are analyzed. The nonequilibrium thermal response of glass-forming materials to fast local thermal perturbations is described using an integral equation with dynamic heat capacity. It is shown that local thermal perturbations associated with the formation of nuclei of the crystalline phase significantly affect the nucleation rate in supercooled glass-forming liquids. The obtained fundamental knowledge can be useful for the technology of new nanostructured materials, polymers and nanocomposites.