Negating Negative Heat Capacity in Nanoclusters

POSTER

Abstract

It is shown that ``negative heat capacity'' in nanoclusters is an artifact of applying equilibrium thermodynamic formalism on a ``small'' system trapped out of equilibrium in a particular structural motif representing only part of the energetically available phase space volume. Trapping may occur in either the canonical or microcanonical ensemble, but it is unavoidable in the microcanonical. A more general consequence of trapping is that all macroscopic quantities determined for nanoclusters will depend on the initial conditions.

Authors

  • Karo Michaelian

    Instituto de Fisica, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, Instituto de Fisica, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Fisica

  • Ivan Santamaria-Holek

    Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico