arXiv subjects

Silvia Corezzi

Publications and source records attributed to Silvia Corezzi.

8 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Elastic and structural anisotropy in silica thin films for gravitational-wave detectors

The thermal noise of mirror coatings for gravitational-wave detectors critically depends on the elastic properties of the constituent materials. Data analyses and theoretical models typically assume each material is homogeneous and isotropic, but isotropy has never been explicitly verified. Using Brillouin light scattering (BLS), we demonstrate for the first time that ion-beam-sputtered SiO2 -- a material still viable for future mirror coatings -- exhibits cylindrical elastic symmetry, with in-plane isotropy but a notable 6% compressive anisotropy along the film normal. This anisotropy remains unchanged after the post-deposition heat treatment currently used in ground-based detectors (500 $^\circ$C, 10 h) but is nearly eliminated at 900 $^\circ$C. Infrared reflectivity experiments support these findings by directly revealing heterogeneities in the distribution of bridging and non-bridging oxygen structures along the growth axis. While BLS measures the real part of the elastic constants at GHz frequencies, the data reveal negligible contributions from mechanical relaxations in the kHz-GHz range, making BLS a valid substitute for low-frequency properties obtained from standard anisotropy-insensitive techniques. Our results highlight that restoring isotropy through heat treatment -- by softening the material, enabling more than 7% out-of-plane expansion, and smoothing out structural heterogeneities -- may play a key role in reducing thermal noise. This proof-of-concept study extends beyond silica, providing critical insights for the design of future coatings.

physics.optics↗

arXiv2022

Connecting Structure, Conformation and Energetics of Human Telomere G-quadruplex Multimers

G-quadruplexes (G4s) are helical four-stranded structures forming from guanine-rich nucleic acid sequences, which are thought to play a role in cancer development and malignant transformation. Most current studies focus on G4 monomers, yet under suitable and biologically relevant conditions G4s undergo multimerization. Here, we address the structural, conformational and energetic features of G4 multimers formed in solutions by the human telomere sequence. A novel multi-technique approach is used combining Small Angle X-ray Scattering (SAXS) and circular dichroism experiments with coarse-grained simulations, to provide quantitative information about large-scale structural features and the stability of G4 multimers. The latter show a significant polydispersity with an exponential distribution of contour lengths, suggesting a step-growth polymerization. On increasing DNA concentration, the strength of G4 stacking interaction increases, as well as the number of the units in the aggregates, with dimers and trimers as the most probable forms. At the same time, a variation of G4 conformation is observed. Our findings provide a quantitative picture of human telomere G4 multimers, which must be accounted for to achieve a rational design of anticancer drugs targeting DNA structures.

physics.bio-ph↗

arXiv2021

Thermoresponsivity of poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) microgels in water-trehalose solution and its relation to protein behavior

Hypotheses: Additives are commonly used to tune macromolecular conformational transitions. Among additives, trehalose is an excellent bioprotectant and among responsive polymers, PNIPAM is the most studied material. Nevertheless, their interaction mechanism so far has only been hinted without direct investigation, and, crucially, never elucidated in comparison to proteins. Detailed insights would help understand to what extent PNIPAM microgels can effectively be used as synthetic biomimetic materials, to reproduce and study, at the colloidal scale, isolated protein behavior and its sensitivity to interactions with specific cosolvents or cosolutes. Experiments: The effect of trehalose on the swelling behavior of PNIPAM microgels was monitored by dynamic light scattering; Raman spectroscopy and molecular dynamics simulations were used to explore changes of solvation and dynamics across the swelling-deswelling transition at the molecular scale. Findings: Strongly hydrated trehalose molecules develop water-mediated interactions with PNIPAM microgels, thereby preserving polymer hydration below and above the transition while drastically inhibiting local motions of the polymer and of its hydration shell. Our study, for the first time, demonstrates that slowdown of dynamics and preferential exclusion are the principal mechanisms governing trehalose effect on PNIPAM microgels, at odds with preferential adsorption of alcohols, but in full analogy with the behavior observed in trehalose-protein systems.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2013

Stress-induced modification of the boson peak scaling behavior

The scaling behavior of the so-called boson peak in glass-formers and its relation to the elastic properties of the system remains a source of controversy. Here, the boson peak in a binary reactive mixture is measured by Raman scattering (i) on cooling the unreacted mixture well below its glass transition temperature and (ii) after quenching to very low temperature the mixture at different times during isothermal polymerization. These different paths to the glassy phase are able to generate glasses with different amounts of residual stresses, as evidenced by the departure of the elastic moduli from a Cauchy-like relationship. We find that the scaling behavior of the boson peak with the properties of the elastic medium --- as measured by the Debye frequency --- holds for states in which the system is able to release internal stress and breaks down in the presence of residual stresses. These findings provide new insight into the boson peak behavior and are able to reconcile the apparently conflicting results presented in literature.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2009

Connecting Irreversible to Reversible Aggregation: Time and Temperature

We report molecular dynamics simulations of a gel-forming mixture of ellipsoidal patchy particles with different functionality. We show that in this model, which disfavors the formation of bond-loops, elapsed time during irreversible aggregation -- leading to the formation of an extended network -- can be formally correlated with equilibrium temperature in reversible aggregation. We also show that it is possible to develop a parameter-free description of the self-assembly kinetics, bringing reversible and irreversible aggregation of loopless branched systems to the same level of understanding as equilibrium polymerization.

cond-mat.dis-nn↗

arXiv2008

A molecular dynamics study of chemical gelation in a patchy particle model

We report event-driven molecular dynamics simulations of the irreversible gelation of hard ellipsoids of revolution containing several associating groups, characterizing how the cluster size distribution evolves as a function of the extent of reaction, both below and above the gel point. We find that in a very large interval of values of the extent of reaction, parameter-free mean-field predictions are extremely accurate, providing evidence that in this model the Ginzburg zone near the gel point, where non-mean field effects are important, is very limited. We also find that the Flory's hypothesis for the post-gelation regime properly describes the connectivity of the clusters even if the long-time limit of the extent of reaction does not reach the fully reacted state. This study shows that irreversibly aggregating asymmetric hard-core patchy particles may provide a close realization of the mean-field model, for which available theoretical predictions may help control the structure and the connectivity of the gel state. Besides chemical gels, the model is relevant to network-forming soft materials like systems with bioselective interactions, functionalized molecules and patchy colloids.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2002

Can experiments select the configurational component of excess entropy?

We introduce an experimental method of assessing the vibrational and configurational components of the excess entropy of a liquid over crystal, based on a joined investigation of dynamic and thermodynamic properties as a function of temperature and pressure. We analyze light scattering, dielectric, calorimetric and dilatometric measurements of three prototype glass formers, orthoterphenyl, salol, and glycerol. In all cases we find that about 70% of the excess entropy is configurational in nature.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2001

Glass transition of an epoxy resin induced by temperature, pressure and chemical conversion: a configurational entropy rationale

A comparative study is reported on the dynamics of a glass-forming epoxy resin when the glass transition is approached through different paths: cooling, compression, and polymerization. In particular, the influence of temperature, pressure and chemical conversion on the dynamics has been investigated by dielectric spectroscopy. Deep similarities are found in dynamic properties. A unified reading of our experimental results for the structural relaxation time is given in the framework of the Adam-Gibbs theory. The quantitative agreement with the experimental data is remarkable, joined with physical values of the fitting parameters. In particular, the fitting function of the isothermal tau(P) data gives a well reasonable prediction for the molar thermal expansion of the neat system, and the fitting function of the isobaric-isothermal tau(C) data under step- polymerization conforms to the prediction of diverging tau at complete conversion of the system.

cond-mat.soft↗