Quantum effects in the dynamics of deeply supercooled water

Phys Rev E Stat Nonlin Soft Matter Phys. 2015 Feb;91(2):022312. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevE.91.022312. Epub 2015 Feb 26.

Abstract

Despite its simple chemical structure, water remains one of the most puzzling liquids with many anomalies at low temperatures. Combining neutron scattering and dielectric relaxation spectroscopy, we show that quantum fluctuations are not negligible in deeply supercooled water. Our dielectric measurements reveal the anomalously weak temperature dependence of structural relaxation in vapor-deposited water close to the glass transition temperature T(g)∼136K. We demonstrate that this anomalous behavior can be explained well by quantum effects. These results have significant implications for our understanding of water dynamics.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
  • Research Support, U.S. Gov't, Non-P.H.S.

MeSH terms

  • Cold Temperature*
  • Dielectric Spectroscopy
  • Glycerol / chemistry
  • Hydrodynamics*
  • Neutron Diffraction
  • Transition Temperature
  • Water / chemistry*

Substances

  • Water
  • Glycerol