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An Experimental And Theoretical Study Of The Nucleation Of Water Vapor On Ions In Helium And Argon, Daniel R. White

Doctoral Dissertations

"The nucleation of water vapor on ions in atmospheres of helium and argon was studied using an expansion type cloud chamber. Separation of the positive and negative ions was achieved so that the nucleation could be studied as a function of both the sign of the ionic charge and the supersaturation. A semiphenominological theory was developed as an extension of the classical theory to include the effects of the ionic charge on the nucleation process. The theoretical model of the prenucleation embryo was assumed to possess an oriented dipole surface layer with the direction of orientation dependent on the sign …