Oscillatory kinetics at solid/solid phase boundaries in ionic crystals

The transfer of matter and charge across interfaces between two solids is related to defect relaxation in the regions near the interface. A transfer rate which exceeds the rate of defect relaxation may lead to degradation of the interface, causing a feedback effect for the transfer process itself. As a consequence, non-linear phenomena (dissipative structures) like periodic oscillations of the interfacial properties can occur under conditions far from equilibrium. Possible mechanisms and experimental examples are discussed.