Nanoscale Spatio-Temporal Glassy Dynamics

该个人研究者奖将支持一个使用扫描探针显微镜研究玻璃系统复杂动力学的项目。特别是在纳米长度尺度上的介电和粘弹性的波动作为频率，时间，位置，电场和温度在聚合物和过冷液体的函数将被研究。这项工作的目标是探索单个的合作重排区域（CRR），了解它们的结构，详细的动力学，以及它们在玻璃现象中的作用。此外，非平衡波动将研究老化玻璃材料。理论工作预测，波动-耗散关系将以模型依赖的方式在慢弛豫系统（如玻璃）中被打破。实验将研究过冷液体和聚合物中这些违反的频率、温度和老化时间依赖性，从而约束玻璃化转变和老化理论，并推进我们对非平衡统计力学的理解。参与这项研究的研究生将接受技能培训，使他们能够在学术界或高科技行业从事未来的职业。此外，通过本科生研究奖学金、合作教育和体验式教育项目，本科生将参与这项研究，获得宝贵的纳米科学经验，并为未来重要的纳米技术做出贡献做好准备。当通过探测超小区域（几乎和分子一样小）来研究材料的性能时，已经发现硬度、弹性或导电性等性能在纳米区域与纳米区域之间或随着时间的推移会有很大的变化。随着纳米技术在未来几年的发展，理解这些变化将变得越来越重要。纳米性质也是理解无序材料的关键。玻璃、聚合物（塑料）和一些金属合金等材料被称为无序，因为它们的分子是随机排列的。该个人研究者奖将支持一个使用先进扫描探针显微技术来研究无序材料纳米特性变化的项目。这些研究将促进我们对这类重要但知之甚少的材料的理解。参与这项研究的研究生将接受技能培训，使他们能够在学术界或高科技行业从事未来的职业。此外，通过本科生研究奖学金、合作教育和体验式教育项目，本科生将参与这项研究，获得宝贵的纳米科学经验，并为未来重要的纳米技术做出贡献做好准备。

This individual investigator award will support a project to investigate the complex dynamics of glassy systems using scanning probe microscopy. In particular fluctuations on nanometer length scales of dielectric and visco-elastic properties as a function of frequency, time, position, electric field, and temperature in polymers and super-cooled liquids will be studied. The goals of the work are to probe individual cooperatively-rearranging-regions (CRR), to understand their structure, detailed dynamics, and their role in glassy phenomena. In addition, nonequilibrium fluctuations will be investigated in aging glassy materials. Theoretical work has predicted that the fluctuation-dissipation-relation will be violated in a model-dependent way in slowly relaxing systems such as glasses. The experiments will investigate the frequency, temperature, and aging-time dependences of these violations in super-cooled liquids and polymers, and thereby constrain theories of the glass transition and aging and advance our understanding of nonequilibrium statistical mechanics. The graduate students involved in this research will be trained in skills that will enable them to pursue future careers in academe or the high-technology industries. In addition, through undergraduate-research-fellowships, cooperative-education, and experiential-education programs, undergraduates will participate in this research, gaining valuable nanoscience experience and preparing them to contribute to important nanotechnologies of the future.When studying the properties of a material by probing ultra-small regions (nearly as small as a molecule), it has been found that properties such as hardness, elasticity, or electrical conductivity can vary considerably from nano-region to nano-region or with time. As nanotechnology is developed over the next few years, these variations will be increasingly important to understand. Nano-properties are also key to a fundamental understanding of disordered materials. Materials such as glass, polymers (plastics), and some metal alloys are called disordered because their molecules are randomly arranged. This individual investigator award will support a project to use advanced scanning probe microscopy techniques to investigate nano-property variations in disordered materials. These studies will advance our understanding of this important but poorly understood class of materials. The graduate students involved in this research will be trained in skills that will enable them to pursue future careers in academe or the high-technology industries. In addition, through undergraduate-research-fellowships, cooperative-education, and experiential-education programs, undergraduates will participate in this research, gaining valuable nanoscience experience and preparing them to contribute to important nanotechnologies of the future.