Nanomaterials and nanotechnologies

1. Nanomaterials and nanotechnologies are very important for current and next generation
technologies. For metallurgical technology, powder metallurgy, in which the metal
powders are utilized, is an important branch of the metallurgy. Currently, the
nanoparticles of some metals, such as gold and silver, are widely utilized in biological
and chemical detections.
You may assume the metal nanoparticles are perfect spheres.
a). From thermodynamic point of view, the nanomaterials are different with the bulk
materials since the nanomaterials have a much higher surface-to-volume ratio. Certainly,
the surface energy plays a role in the melting behavior of the materials. Please discuss the
influence of the surface energy on the melting process (i.e., melting temperature) of the
nanoparticles. 

b) Please select a metal for your study. Discuss the influence of the size on the phase
transition behavior(s) (such as melting behavior) of the metal nanoparticles. 

c). Following your discussion above, please modify the phase diagram of pure iron to
describe the phase behavior of nanosized iron particles using properties of iron. You have
to cite the resource of the property you used in your discussion.

Format: Follow the requirement for the submissions to Journal of Applied Physics except
your submission should be in single space rather than double space.
Length: Reasonable length as you may think.

There are 30 pts for the format.
 5 pts for each of following six aspects:
o submission email
o title
o references
o figures
o text
o overall.