X-ray diffuse scattering study of height fluctuations at the liquid-vapor interface of gallium

We report an experimental study of wavelength dependent interfacial tension of liquid Ga using X-ray surface diffusion scattering. The observed surface tension can be explained by Mecke-Dietrich formalism derived from a microscopic density functional theory when the known stratified liquid-vapor interfacial density profile of Ga and a so-called individual local pseudo-potential for the pair-interaction potential of liquid metal are used. The quantitative behavior of the surface tension as a function of wavelength is very sensitive to the forms of both the interfacial density profile and the asymptotic part of the pair-potential, and is different from that observed from several dielectric liquids reported previously (Nature 403 (2000) 871; Phys. Rev. Lett. 90 (2003) 216101).