Solidification is a material transformation familiar to everyone. When ice cubes are made in a refrigerator, water is solidifying into its solid form-ice. Snow is another form of solid water that results from rapid cooling.
Snowflakes take on an interesting treelike structure called a dendrite.
Most metal products solidify by forming dendrites. The size, shape, and orientation of the dendrites help determine the strength and durability of steel, aluminum, and superalloys used in the production of automobiles and airplanes. Because virtually all industrially important alloys solidify from a molten state by dendritic processes, enhancing the basic understanding of dendritic solidification may help improve industrial production techniques.