Condensed Matter Physics, 2000, vol. 3, No. 3(23), p. 675-681, English
DOI:10.5488/CMP.3.3.675

Title: HETEROPHASE FLUCTUATIONS IN GLASS-FORMING LIQUIDS AND RANDOM FIELD ISING MODEL
Author(s): A.S.Bakai (National Science Center ``Kharkiv Institute of Physics and Technology'', 61108 Kharkiv, Ukraine)

The liquid-to-glass transition is a process of supercooled liquid solidification. Rather large density fluctuations are revealed experimentally in many of the glass-forming liquids above the glass transition temperature while no phase transitions are identified \cite{Sil,Fis}. In \cite{Bka,Bai,Fsh}, the inhomogeneities are treated as heterophase fluctuations (HPF). The process of glass formation gets there a natural description as a continuous phase transformation. The theory of strong HPF was developed in a mean field approximation which ignores the mesoscopic structure of the inhomogeneities which is an issue of extensive experimental investigations and discussions \cite{Sil,Fis,Fsh}. In the present communication the HPF are considered in the model of interpercolating heterophase states and in Ginzburg-Landau (GL) approach. It is shown that the GL approach results in the random field Ising model (RFIM) for HPF. It permits to get a description of the medium range and long-range correlations of the HPF. RFIM is very useful in studying the spin systems with a frozen-in disorder. Therefore the theory developed makes it possible to compare the phase states with frozen-in (spin systems) and self-consistent (heterophase liquids) disorders. In particular, it turns out that the heterophase liquids are similar (but not identical) to Griffiths phase of disordered spin systems. It is seen that the developed model bridges the theories of disordered spin systems and glass-forming liquids.

Comments: Figs. 0, Refs. 14, Tabs. 0.


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