The Random First Order Transition Theory of Glasses in Real Space-Time: Instantons, Strings, Flames and Flows

TL;DR

This paper develops a real space-time theoretical framework for understanding glasses, incorporating nonlinear objects like instantons and strings to explain phenomena such as aging, heterogeneity, and shear band formation.

Contribution

It introduces a novel real space-time description of the RFOT theory, integrating complex nonlinear structures to better understand glass dynamics and transitions.

Findings

Describes crossover to energy landscape regime

Explains dynamical heterogeneity in glasses

Analyzes shear band formation under stress

Abstract

Understanding structural glasses using the Random First Order Transition theory requires a description in both real space and in time, taking into account sample history. A variety of nonlinear objects enter this description, in field theory terms, when there is replica symmetry breaking: instantons, strings, flames and flows. We focus on this real space description and use it to describe the crossover to the energy landscape regime, dynamical heterogeneity, aging and the formation of shear bands in glasses under stress.