Influence of Low Nickel Contents on the Surface Tension and Density of Nickel-Indium Melts

The density and the surface tension coefficient of nickel–indium melts with low Ni contents ranging from 0 to 15 at.% have been studied, by using the sessile drop method. Analytic expressions are derived for the temperature dependences of the density and the surface tension coefficient of a melt. Anomalies in the concentration dependences of the density and the surface tension coefficient are revealed. They are supposed to be caused by structural inhomogeneities both near the melt surface and in the melt bulk.