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Updated: Jul 8, 2026
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Cooling Rate Dependent Ellipsometry Measurements to Determine the Dynamics of Thin Glassy Films
Published on: January 27, 2016
Local polarization fluctuations in an aging glass
K S Sinnathamby1, H Oukris, N E Israeloff
1Department of Physics, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts 02115, USA.
Physical Review Letters
|August 11, 2005
Summary
Aging polymer glasses exhibit increased non-Gaussian noise, indicating stronger correlations. Polarization fluctuations in nanoscale volumes reveal changes in material dynamics during aging after a temperature quench.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Polymer Physics
- Statistical Mechanics
Background:
- Polymer glasses exhibit complex dynamics near the glass transition.
- Understanding aging phenomena in amorphous materials is crucial for predicting long-term stability.
- Nanoscale characterization techniques provide insights into local material behavior.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate polarization fluctuations in polymer glasses during aging.
- To analyze the statistical properties of noise in equilibrium and aging states.
- To determine how aging affects the correlations within nanoscale volumes.
Main Methods:
- Measurement of polarization fluctuations in nanoscale volumes.
- Temperature quench through the glass transition.
- Analysis of noise spectral density and statistical properties (Gaussianity).
Main Results:
- Polarization fluctuations were measured in nanoscale volumes of polymer glass.
- Noise spectral density showed larger temporal variance during aging.
- The noise exhibited more non-Gaussian behavior during aging compared to equilibrium.
Conclusions:
- Aging in polymer glasses leads to increased temporal variance and non-Gaussian noise.
- Enhanced non-Gaussianity suggests stronger correlations within nanoscale volumes during aging.
- These findings provide insights into the dynamic processes governing polymer glass aging.
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