An Analysis of Bubble Growth in Materials Supersaturated with Inert Gas

AbstractThe rate of growth is derived of a fixed number of gas bubbles in a supersaturated solid, where therate-controlling process is the diffusion and not the assimilation of gas atoms at the bubble surface. Two expressions are obtained, corresponding to the perfect and non-perfect behaviour of the gas according to the pressure at which it is contained in the bubbles. In each case an abundant supply of thermal vacancies, which sustain equilibrium between the gas pressure and surface-tension restraint of the bubble, is taken to be available throughout the growth process. The necessary criterion that must be satisfied for this assumption to be valid is deduced.