Abstract
A standard model of glasses is shown to exhibit unexpected and remarkably simple elastic properties. For a sequence of networks of decreasing degree or coordination z, the number of zero-frequency vibrational modes (also called ‘‘degrees of freedom’’) increases as . A simple statistical model is given which illuminates this behavior. In addition, the elastic constant decreases as (z-; in certain cases other elastic constants also exhibit this behavior. These simple functional relationships appear to hold accurately for all z>, where is the critical average degree at which the elastic constants vanish.
- Received 25 November 1991
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.68.2172
©1992 American Physical Society