Crystallization Kinetics of Concurrent Liquid–Metastableand Metastable–Stable Transitions, and Ostwald’s StepRule.

Experimental measurements of colloidalcrystallization in a widerange of volume fractions of charged particles were performed to investigatethe liquid–metastable–stable transition process. Tofit the obtained experimental data, we developed a theoretical modelto formulate the kinetics of the concurrent liquid–metastableand metastable–stable transitions. This model is well-supportedby our observations. We found that when the ratio of the metastable–stabletransition rate to the liquid–metastable rate is very large,the metastable state can become undetectable, although it still exists,offering a possible explanation for very few exceptions to Ostwald’sstep rule. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]