Structure and dynamics of surface crystallization of liquidn-alkanes

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Abstract
Formation of a crystalline monolayer at the surface of an absorbed liquid n-heptadecane film above the bulk solidification temperature, with the molecules in the layer hexagonally packed and their axes tilted by ∼25° from the surface normal, is found using molecular-dynamics simulations, corroborating recent observations. A crystallized adsorbed thin film (∼40 Å) of hexadecane is found to consist of four layers of molecules oriented parallel to the substrate and a topmost hexagonally packed layer with molecules oriented toward the normal.