Deposition

Deposition is defined as “the process of turning Gas into a solid”. Deposition is also known as “Desublimation” because it is the opposite process as “Sublimation” which is the turning of a solid directly into a gas. In order for deposition to be possible, lots of energy must be lost in a very short amount of time, meaning that the molecules that make up the gas, which are moving very quickly, must be slowed down so fast that they don’t have time to turn into a liquid in between.

An example of deposition on Earth is how snow forms in clouds; water vapor is lifted high into the atmosphere where it is so cold that the sub-freezing air changes the moist air directly into solid ice (snow) so fast that there is no time for it to turn into liquid water in between. Another example of deposition is how frost can form at the surface of Earth. Frost is formed when warm moist air is pushed into very cold air, and the cold air causes the moisture in the air to condense very quickly into ice, when it hits solid objects, like leaves, grass, and street signs.

Deposition is also used in science to make thin film material for things such as solar panels, gas chemicals are dispersed then energy is taken from them in order to make a thin film of solid material.