This class is a rigorous introduction to the physical principles and concepts behind glass. After developing the statistical mechanics required for the study of glass; the role of the structure function and the pair distribution function in determining the structure of glass is examined in detail. Several glass networks are selected as representative systems. Viscoelastic theory and relaxation behavior are studied as are the traditional methods for measuring the viscosity of glass forming systems. The thermodynamics of glass transition are examined using energy and enthalpy landscapes. Temperature dependent constraint theory is applied to several systems.
Crosslisted