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arXiv · 1003.2371

Emergence of foams from the breakdown of the phase field crystal model

Nicholas Guttenberg·Nigel Goldenfeld·Jonathan Dantzig
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Abstract

The phase field crystal (PFC) model captures the elastic and topological properties of crystals with a single scalar field at small undercooling. At large undercooling, new foam-like behavior emerges. We characterize this foam phase of the PFC equation and propose a modified PFC equation that may be used for the simulation of foam dynamics. This minimal model reproduces von Neumann's rule for two-dimensional dry foams, and Lifshitz-Slyozov coarsening for wet foams. We also measure the coordination number distribution and find that its second moment is larger than previously-reported experimental and theoretical studies of soap froths, a finding that we attribute to the wetness of the foam increasing with time.

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Nicholas Guttenberg, Nigel Goldenfeld, Jonathan Dantzig. 2010-03-11. Emergence of foams from the breakdown of the phase field crystal model. https://doi.org/10.1103/physreve.81.065301

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