Liquid Surface Tension Measurements by Analysis of Solid-State Curvatures; The Surface Tension of Liquid Germanium

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Abstract
A procedure based upon zone‐melting techniques has been developed for determining liquid‐gas surface tension coefficients for liquids at their melting points by analysis of the surface curvatures of solid specimens. The method can give standard deviations of the mean of the order of ±1 percent. It has been calibrated with lead and cadmium to be valid to within at least ±5—10 percent. The most important factors limiting its range of applicability are crystallographic forces which produce facets on the solid and the difficulty of producing and maintaining a clean liquid‐gas surface. The surface tension of liquid germanium at its melting point, 934.5°C, in contact with helium or nitrogen has been found to be 632±5 dyne/cm, in good agreement with a previously reported value.

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