Wettability and Supercooling Phenomena of Ga

Surface tension (γ(L)) and contact angle (θ) of gallium related to wettability on Teflon and other substrates (Al(2)O(3), SiO(2), glass, graphite, BN, AI, Ni, As etc.) were investigated. The values of Teflon were 0.70(6)N/m and 158° in pure argon atmosphere, and the ones of other substrates were listed in a table in this text. We were interested especially in the relative values, γ(L)'s, on the substrates as compared with γ(L) on Teflon substrate. Liquid Ga showed spreading wetting on pure Ni metal and adhesional wetting on Al (supposed to be covered by A1(2)O(3)) and on metallic polycrystal As. Surface tension of Ga was remarkably decreased by a kind of oxide contamination due to oxygen in air. The surface layer coated by the contamination was of amorphous state nearly same as liquid Ga. The amorphous coat caused liquid Ga rather high supercooling of △T~35K. It seems that the contamination layer (oxide fi1m) smeared the crystal nucleation sites on the free surface of liquid Ga