ON THE THERMAL STABILITY AND MELTING TEMPERATURE OF NANO-SYSTEMS

Various material properties which are well defined and clearly fixed for macroscopic systems, get a modified significance in nano-physics and nano-technology. It is shown, as an example, that the temperature behaviour of material systems is considerably changed when we go from macroscopic to nanometersize. It is pointed out that the standard model of solid state physics (ordered structure, harmonic approximation) is in general not sufficient for the description of nano-systems.