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Equilibrium Distribution of the Inherent States and their Dynamics in Glassy Systems and Granular Media

Annalisa Fierro·Mario Nicodemi·Antonio Coniglio
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Abstract

The present paper proposes a Statistical Mechanics approach to the inherent states of glassy systems and granular materials, following the original ideas developed by Edwards for granular materials. Two lattice models, a diluted Spin Glass and a system of hard-spheres under gravity, introduced in the context of glassy systems and granular materials, are evolved using a ``tap dynamics'' analogous to that of experiments on granular materials. The asymptotic macrostates, reached by the system, are shown to be described by a single thermodynamical parameter, and this parameter to coincide with the temperature, called the ``configurational temperature'', predicted assuming that the distribution among the inherent states satisfies the principle of maximum entropy.

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Annalisa Fierro, Mario Nicodemi, Antonio Coniglio. 2002-09-02. Equilibrium Distribution of the Inherent States and their Dynamics in Glassy Systems and Granular Media. https://doi.org/10.1209/epl%2Fi2002-00173-x

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