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Amorphous materials: Properties, structure, and durability

Constrained interactions, rigidity, adaptative networks, and their role for the description of silicates

Laboratoire de Physique Théorique de la Matière Condensée, Boite 121, Université Pierre et Marie Curie, 4, place Jussieu, 75252 Paris Cedex 05, France

Correspondence: ^* E-mail: mmi{at}lptl.jussieu.fr

Silicate glasses can be seen as connectivity networks where specific tools are used for the understanding of the behavior with composition of their chemical and physical properties. These tools make use of the effective interatomic interactions and mechanical constraints such as those used for analyzing the stability of macroscopic trusses. We first describe how complex interactions and coordination numbers can be efficiently handled within a general framework. The ingredients of the general framework, also known as mean-field bond constraint theory, are then presented. The theory predicts flexible to stressed-rigid elastic phase transitions at threshold compositions (or mean-coordination numbers). Applications to alkali- and alkaline-earth-silicates are considered and experimental signatures of the phase transition identified. Finally, we focus on the latest development in the field, namely the appearance of a new self-organized intermediate phase between flexible and stressed-rigid phases. Experimental signatures of these phases are reviewed, and the tools of adaptative silicate networks used to understand their features.

Key Words: Network glasses • silicates • rigidity • constraints