Letter abstract
Nature Physics 3, 260 - 264 (2007)
Published online: 25 March 2007 | doi:10.1038/nphys572
Measurement of growing dynamical length scales and prediction of the jamming transition in a granular material
Aaron S. Keys1,1, Adam R. Abate2,1, Sharon C. Glotzer1,3 & Douglas J. Durian2
Supercooled liquids and dense colloidal suspensions exhibit anomalous behaviour known as 'spatially heterogeneous dynamics' (SHD), which becomes increasingly pronounced as the system approaches the glass transition1, 2, 3. Recently, the observation of SHD in confined granular packings under slow shear near the onset of jamming has bolstered speculation that the two transitions are related4, 5, 6. Here, we report measurements of SHD in a system of air-driven granular beads, as a function of both density and effective temperature. On approach to jamming, the dynamics becomes progressively slower and more spatially heterogeneous. The rapid growth of timescales and dynamical length scales characterizing the heterogeneities can be described both by mode-coupling theory7 and the Vogel–Tammann–Fulcher (VTF) equation8, such as in glass-forming liquids. The value of the control variable at the VTF transition coincides with point J (refs 9, 10), the random close-packed jamming density at which all motion ceases, in analogy to a zero-temperature ideal glass transition. Our findings demonstrate further universality of the jamming concept and provide a significant step forward in the quest for a unified theory of jamming in disparate systems.
- Department of Chemical Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-2136, USA
- Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19104, USA
- Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48109-2136, USA
- These authors contributed equally to this work
Correspondence to: Sharon C. Glotzer1,3 e-mail: sglotzer@umich.edu
Correspondence to: Douglas J. Durian2 e-mail: djdurian@physics.upenn.edu
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