Effect of molecular size and hydrogen bonding on three surface-facilitated processes in molecular glasses: Surface diffusion, surface crystal growth, and formation of stable glasses by vapor deposition.

Recent work has shown that diffusion and crystal growth can be much faster on the surface of molecular glasses than in the interior and that the enhancement effect varies with molecular size and intermolecular hydrogen bonds (HBs). In a related phenomenon, some molecules form highly stable glasses when vapor-deposited, while others (notably those forming extensive HBs) do not. Here we examine all available data on these phenomena for quantitative structure-property relations.