Effect of the surface polarization on the nucleation at liquid/gas interfaces

The influence of the electrolyte, and the polarization effect, on the new phase formation is interpreted from the standpoint of nucleation theory. The principal importance of taking into account the role of the surface dielectric constant and the presence of electric double layers on the surface is pointed out. The generalized electrostatic boundary conditions and the consequence of their introduction are formulated and discussed. The polarization effect is evaluated by means of a simplified model and the theoretical results are compared to the experimental data of liquid expanded phase (LE)–liquid condensed phase (LC) phase transition of DPPG monolayers. This comparison leads to the conclusion that the LE-phase should have a greater surface dielectric constant than the LC-phase.