The thermo-elastic instability model of melting of alkali halides in the Debye approximation

ABSTRACT

The Debye model of lattice vibrations of alkali halides is used to show that there is a temperature below the melting temperature where the vibrational pressure exceeds the electrostatic pressure. The onset temperature of this thermo-elastic instability scales as the melting temperature of NaCl, KCl, and KBr, suggesting its role in the melting of the alkali halides in agreement with a previous more rigorous model.

KEYWORDS:

• Thermo-elastic instability
• vibrational pressure
• electrostatic pressure
• Debye model of lattice vibrations

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author.