Dresden 2011 – scientific programme

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CPP: Fachverband Chemische Physik und Polymerphysik

CPP 30: Glasses and Glass Transition I (jointly with DY, DF)

CPP 30.2: Talk

Wednesday, March 16, 2011, 10:30–10:45, KÖN Farb

Identification of facilitation effects in supercooled liquids — •Andreas Heuer and Christian Rehwald — Institute of Physical Chemistry, University of Muenster

In a first step we analyze the information content of the finite-size effects of a glass-forming system. Interestingly, the diffusion constant shows a very weak and the structural relaxation time a very strong finite-size effect [1]. This result reflects the dynamic coupling of different regions in real space via a facilitation mechanism. We can formulate a minimum model of the glass transition which can reproduce in detail the observed features of these finite-size effets. It can be regarded as a generalization of the kinetically constrained models [2].

In a second step we search for a direct evidence of this facilitation mechanism in computer simulations. Using the setup of a highly non-equilibrium configuration these causal relations between successive relaxation events can indeed be found and characterized.

[1] C. Rehwald, O. Rubner, A. Heuer, Phys. Rev. Lett. 105, 117801 (2010).

[2] Y. J. Jung, J. P. Garrahan, and D. Chandler, Phys. Rev. E 69, 061205 (2004).