Can exotic disordered "stealthy" particle configurations tolerate arbitrarily large holes?

G. Zhang, F. H. Stillinger, S. Torquato

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

23 Scopus citations

Abstract

The probability of finding a spherical cavity or "hole" of arbitrarily large size in typical disordered many-particle systems in the infinite-system-size limit (e.g., equilibrium liquid states) is non-zero. Such "hole" statistics are intimately linked to the thermodynamic and nonequilibrium physical properties of the system. Disordered "stealthy" many-particle configurations in d-dimensional Euclidean space d are exotic amorphous states of matter that lie between a liquid and crystal that prohibit single-scattering events for a range of wave vectors and possess no Bragg peaks [Torquato et al., Phys. Rev. X, 2015, 5, 021020]. In this paper, we provide strong numerical evidence that disordered stealthy configurations across the first three space dimensions cannot tolerate arbitrarily large holes in the infinite-system-size limit, i.e., the hole probability has compact support. This structural "rigidity" property apparently endows disordered stealthy systems with novel thermodynamic and physical properties, including desirable band-gap, optical and transport characteristics. We also determine the maximum hole size that any stealthy system can possess across the first three space dimensions.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)6197-6207
Number of pages11
JournalSoft matter
Volume13
Issue number36
DOIs
StatePublished - 2017

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • General Chemistry
  • Condensed Matter Physics

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