Are critical fluctuations responsible for glass formation?

Starzonek, Szymon (avtor), Łoś, Joanna M. (avtor), Rzoska, Sylwester (avtor), Drozd-Rzoska, Aleksandra (avtor), Iglič, Aleš (avtor)

The dynamic heterogeneities occurring just before the transition to the glassy phase have been named as the cause of amorphization in supercooled systems. Numerous studies conducted so far have confirmed this hypothesis, and based on it, a widely accepted solution to the puzzle of glass transition has been developed. This report focuses on verifying the existence of a strong pretransitional anomaly near the glass transition ▫$T_g$▫. For this purpose, supercooled liquid-crystalline systems with a strong rod-like structure were selected. Based on the obtained experimental data, we demonstrate in this article that the previously postulated dynamic heterogeneities exhibit a critical characteristic, meaning a strong pretransitional anomaly can be observed with the described critical exponent ▫$\alpha=0.5$▫. Due to this property, it can be concluded that these heterogeneities are critical fluctuations, and consequently, the transition to the glassy state can be described based on the theory of critical phenomena. To measure the pretransitional anomaly near ▫$T_g$▫ in supercooled liquid-crystalline systems, broadband dielectric spectroscopy (BDS) and nonlinear dielectric effect (NDE) methods were applied. The exponent ▫$\alpha$▫ provides insight into the nature and intensity of critical fluctuations in the system. A value of ▫$\alpha=0.5$▫ suggests that the fluctuations become increasingly intense as the system approaches the critical point, contributing to the divergence in specific heat. Understanding the role of critical fluctuations in the glass transition is crucial for innovating and improving a wide range of materials for energy storage, materials design, biomedical applications, food preservation, and environmental sustainability. These advancements can lead to materials with superior properties, optimized manufacturing processes, and applications that meet the demands of modern technology and sustainability challenges.

• Jezik: Angleški jezik
• Ključne besede: glass formation, critical phenomena, phase transitions, liquid crystals, physics glass
• Vrsta gradiva: Članek v reviji
• Tipologija: 1.01 - Izvirni znanstveni članek
• Organizacija: FE - Fakulteta za elektrotehniko
• Status publikacije: Objavljeno
• Različica publikacije: Objavljena publikacija
• Leto izida: 2024
• Št. strani: 19 str.
• Številčenje: Vol. 17, iss. 14, [article no.] 3385
• PID: 20.500.12556/RUL-159749
• UDK: 539.213
• ISSN pri članku: 1996-1944
• DOI: 10.3390/ma17143385
• COBISS.SI-ID: 202149635
• Datum objave v RUL: 22.07.2024

Gradivo je del revije

• Naslov: Materials
• Skrajšan naslov: Materials
• Založnik: Molecular Diversity Preservation International
• ISSN: 1996-1944
• COBISS.SI-ID: 33588485

Licence

• Licenca: CC BY 4.0, Creative Commons Priznanje avtorstva 4.0 Mednarodna
• Povezava: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/deed.sl
• Opis: To je standardna licenca Creative Commons, ki daje uporabnikom največ možnosti za nadaljnjo uporabo dela, pri čemer morajo navesti avtorja.

Sekundarni jezik

• Jezik: Slovenski jezik
• Ključne besede: formacija stekla, kritični pojavi, fazni prehodi, tekoči pojavi, fizika stekla