EXTENSION OF THE THERMODYNAMICS OF SMALL SYSTEMS TO OPEN METASTABLE STATES - AN EXAMPLE

By using a simplified model of small open liquid-like clusters with su rface effects, in the gas phase, it is shown how the statistical therm odynamics of small systems can be extended to include metastable super saturated gaseous states not too far from the gas-liquid equilibrium t ransition point. To accomplish this, one has to distinguish between ma thematical divergence and physical convergence of the open-system part ition function.