Excitation Chains at the Glass Transition

2006/06/26 by J. S. Langer
Engineering · Materials Science · Physics and Astronomy · #Arrhenius equation #Chemical physics #Classical mechanics #Condensation #Condensed matter physics #Critical point (mathematics) #Excitation #Glass properties and applications #Glass transition #Kinetics #Material Dynamics and Properties #Materials science #Phase Equilibria and Thermodynamics #Phase transition #Physics #Polymer #Quantum mechanics #Relaxation (psychology) #Thermodynamics #Transition point #cond-mat.mtrl-sci #cond-mat.stat-mech

paper · pdf · doi:10.1103/physrevlett.97.115704

4 pages, no figures

arxiv created 2006/06/26 · openalex publication_date 2006/09/14 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05

Abstract

The excitation-chain theory of the glass transition, proposed in an earlier publication, predicts diverging, super-Arrhenius relaxation times and, via a similarly diverging length scale, suggests a way of understanding the relations between dynamic and thermodynamic properties of glass-forming liquids. I argue here that critically large excitation chains play a role roughly analogous to that played by critical clusters in the droplet model of vapor condensation. Unlike a first-order condensation point in a vapor, the glass transition is not a conventional phase transformation, and may not be a thermodynamic transition at all.

Citations

• On the Temperature Dependence of Cooperative Relaxation Properties in Glass-Forming Liquids
• Formation of Glasses from Liquids and Biopolymers
• Fragilities of liquids predicted from the random first order transition theory of glasses
• Dynamics and thermodynamics of the glass transition
• Vibrations and Diverging Length Scales Near the Unjamming Transition