Physicists have shown that water turns into two liquids at low temperatures

A new kind of "phase transition" in water has been proposed for the first time for 30 yearsback in a study by scientists from Boston

The authors of the study then suggested that with significant cooling, liquid water should separate into two forms with different densities.

However, experimental confirmation of this hypothesishas not yet succeeded, because the transition must occur at temperatures where, under normal conditions, water turns to ice. In a paper published in the journal Nature Physics, researchers from the University of Birmingham and Sapienza University in Rome provide evidence for the existence of "dense water".

Physicists used computer simulations,to explain what features distinguish the two liquids at the microscopic level. They found that water molecules in a high-density liquid form structures that are considered "topologically complex," such as the trefoil knot (similar to a pretzel) or the Hopf link (similar to chain links). In contrast, the molecules in a low density liquid mostly form simple rings, and therefore the molecules in a low density liquid are not entangled.

Computer model of the state of water with high density. Image: Andreas Neophytou et al., Nature Physics

The researchers used in their simulationscolloidal and molecular models of water. Colloids are particles that can be a thousand times larger than a single water molecule. Due to their relatively larger size and therefore slower movement, colloids are used to observe and explain physical phenomena that also occur on much smaller atomic and molecular scales.

In this paper, for the first time, we offer a look atliquid-liquid phase transition based on the ideas of network entanglement. I am sure that this work will inspire new theoretical modeling based on topological concepts.

Francesco Sciortino, professor at Sapienza University and co-author of the study

Researchers believe that they have developedmodel will help to design the experimental conditions to confirm the phase transition in the liquid. In addition, they believe that similar states can be observed in other substances, such as silicon.

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