A Dynamically Correlated Network Model for the Collective Dynamics in Glass-Forming Molecular Liquids and Polymers.

The non-Arrhenius behavior of segmental dynamics in glass-forming liquids is one of the most profound mysteries in soft matter physics. In this article, we propose a dynamically correlated network (DCN) model to understand the growing behavior of dynamically correlated regions during cooling, which leads to the viscous slowdown of supercooled liquids. The fundamental concept of the model is that the cooperative region of collective motions has a network structure that consists of string-like parts, and networks of various sizes interpenetrate each other.