Measurements of Growth Rates of (0001) Ice Crystal Surfaces

We present measurements of growth rates of the (0001) facet surface of ice as a function of water vapor supersaturation over the temperature range −2 ≥ T ≥ −40 C. From these data we infer the temperature dependence of premelting on the basal surface and the effects of premelting on the ice growth dynamics. Over this entire temperature range the growth was consistent with a simple 2D nucleation model, allowing a measurement of the critical supersaturation σ0(T ) as a function of temperature. We find that the 2D nucleation barrier is substantially diminished when the premelted layer is partially developed, as indicated by a reduced σ0, while the barrier is higher both when the premelted layer is fully absent or fully developed.