Temperature-dependent kinetic pathways featuring distinctive thermal-activation mechanisms in structural evolution of ice VII

Ice amorphization, low- to high-density amorphous (LDA-HDA) transition, as well as (re)crystallization in ice, under compression have been studied extensively due to their fundamental importance in materials science and polyamorphism. However, the nature of the multiple-step "reverse" transformation from metastable high-pressure ice to the stable crystalline form under reduced pressure is not well understood. Here, we characterize the rate and temperature dependence of the structural evolution from ice VII to ice I recovered at low pressure (∼5 mTorr) using in situ time-resolved X-ray diffraction. Unlike previously reported ice VII (or ice VIII)→LDA→ice I transitions, we reveal three temperature-dependent successive transformations: conversion of ice VII into HDA, followed by HDA-to-LDA transition, and then crystallization of LDA into ice I. Significantly, the temperature-dependent characteristic times indicate distinctive thermal activation mechanisms above and below 110-115 K for both ice VIII-to-HDA and HDA-to-LDA transitions. Large-scale molecular-dynamics calculations show that the structural evolution from HDA to LDA is continuous and involves substantial movements of the water molecules at the nanoscale. The results provide a perspective on the interrelationship of polyamorphism and unravel its underpinning complexities in shaping ice-transition kinetic pathways.