Hydrodynamic scalings in the rapid growth of crystals from solution

Abstract

Flow field phenomena in the rapid growth of crystals from solution are studied experimentally. The phenomena studied include large-scale global transport over length scales of the order of the tank dimensions and local stirring of solution near the crystal surface. Convective transport processes in these regimes are explored by flow visualization and fluid velocity measurement techniques. Based upon these data, scaling laws are developed that relate fluid dynamics to geometric and operating parameters employed in rapid growth from solution. Observations indicate that upon start of rotation of the crystal, a vortex forms off each corner of the crystal, which dominates the initial flow field b..