Water confined in nanopores: Spontaneous formation of microcavities

Molecular dynamics simulations of water confined in nanometer sized, hydrophobic channels show that water forms localized cavities for pore diameter greater than or similar to 2.0 nm. The cavities present nonspherical shape and lay preferentially adjacent to the confining wall inducing a peculiar form to the liquid exposed surface. The regime of localized cavitation appears to be correlated with the formation of a vapor layer, as predicted by the Lum-Chandler-Weeks theory [J. Phys. Chem. B 103, 4570 (1999)], implying partial filling of the pore.