Dynamics of some constrained lattices.pdfVIP

Dynamics of some Constrained Lattices M.E. Simon, and C. M. Varma Bell Laboratories, Lucent Technologies Murray Hill, NJ 07974 0 We consider the dynamics of lattices which have constrained constitutive units flexible 0 in only their mutual orientations. A continuum description is derived through which it 0 is shown that the models have zero shear velocity, free-particle like internal rotational 2 modes and volume decreasing linearly with temperature. The relevance of models to a v range of problems is pointed out. o N 0 1 INTRODUCTION ] i c s The dynamical properties of solids with strong anharmonicity are often usefully studied by specifying l- the constraints on the atoms rather than the forces between them. This approach has yielded interesting r results in phenomena ranging from the properties of interfaces1 to criteria for glass-formation2,3 to t m rigidity percolation4 in solids with ”floppy Modes”. . We consider here the problem of lattices in which some (strongly anharmonic) bonds can be deformed t a at a much lower energy than the others. As noted below the problem is of wide interest but our attention to it is drawn by the contraction in volume of a class of solids linearly as temperature is increased, in a m- range of temperature which in some cases extends from ∼ 10K to the highest measured temperature5,6 . d Conventional perturbative calculations with anharmonic potentials are not very helpful in this case. n These solids have a complicated lattice structure but always c