Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 30, 2026

Cooling Rate Dependent Ellipsometry Measurements to Determine the Dynamics of Thin Glassy Films
Published on: January 26, 2016
Potential energy landscape and long-time dynamics in a simple model glass
1Universita di Trento and Istituto Nazionale di Fisica della Materia, I-38050, Povo, Trento, Italy.
Abstract:
We analyze the properties of a Lennard-Jones system at the level of the potential energy landscape. After an exhaustive investigation of the topological features of the landscape of the systems, obtained by studying small size samples, we describe the dynamics of the systems in multidimensional configurational space by means of a simple model. This considers the configurational space as a connected network of minima where the dynamics proceeds by jumps described by an appropriate master equation. Using this model we are able to reproduce the long-time dynamics and the low temperature regime. We investigate both the equilibrium regime and the off-equilibrium one, finding those typical glassy behaviors usually observed in the experiments such as (i) a stretched exponential relaxation, (ii) a temperature-dependent stretching parameter, (iii) a breakdown of the Stokes-Einstein relation, and (iv) the appearance of a critical temperature below which one observes a deviation from the fluctuation-dissipation relation as a consequence of the lack of equilibrium in the system.
More Related Videos
Related Concept Videos
First Law: Particles in One-dimensional Equilibrium
Force and Potential Energy in One Dimension
Energy Diagrams - I
Take the example of a skater on a parabolic ramp. The potential energy at different points along the ramp will be proportional to the height of the ramp, which varies quadratically with the horizontal position on the ramp. As the skater moves down the ramp from the highest position,...
Energy Diagrams - II
The point in the energy diagram at which the system’s potential energy is the lowest is known as the local minima. The system tends to stay in this position indefinitely unless acted upon by a net force. The slope of the potential energy diagram at the local minima is zero, indicating that zero net force is acting on the system. The slope...
The Kinetic Model of Gases
Lattice Energies of Ionic Crystals

