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Updated: Jul 12, 2026

Methods of Ex Situ and In Situ Investigations of Structural Transformations: The Case of Crystallization of Metallic Glasses
Published on: June 7, 2018
A topographic view of supercooled liquids and glass formation
Abstract:
Various static and dynamic phenomena displayed by glass-forming liquids, particularly those near the so-called "fragile" limit, emerge as manifestations of the multidimensional complex topography of the collective potential energy function. These include non-Arrhenius viscosity and relaxation times, bifurcation between the alpha- and beta-relaxation processes, and a breakdown of the Stokes-Einstein relation for self-diffusion. This multidimensional viewpoint also produces an extension of the venerable Lindemann melting criterion and provides a critical evaluation of the popular "ideal glass state" concept.
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