computer-science
Scientists find molecular-level evidence for two structures in liquid water
Key takeaways
- Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:
- The idea that water might exist in two distinct structural states is not new.
- But the model has remained controversial because direct molecular-level evidence for the two structures has been elusive.
Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility:
Add as preferred source Evidence of two local structures in liquid water. Credit: Nature Physics (2026). DOI: 10.1038/s41567-026-03301-8 A study published in Nature Physics provides new molecular-level evidence from simulations that liquid water is not a single uniform substance, but a constantly shifting mixture of two distinct microscopic structures.
The idea that water might exist in two distinct structural states is not new. For decades, scientists have theorized that liquid water is composed of two interconvertible local structures—one denser and more disordered, the other less dense and more ordered.
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