Using inelastic neutron scattering and molecular dynamics simulations on a model Zr-Cu-Al metallic glass, we show that transverse phonons persist well into the high-frequency regime, and can be detected at large momentum transfer. Furthermore, the apparent peak width of the transverse phonons was found to follow the static structure factor. The one-to-one correspondence, which was demonstrated for both Zr-Cu-Al metallic glass and a three-dimensional Lennard-Jones model glass, suggests a universal correlation between the phonon dynamics and the underlying disordered structure. This remarkable correlation, not found for longitudinal phonons, underscores the key role that transverse phonons hold for understanding the structure-dynamics relationship in disordered materials.
Read more at Physical Review Letters:
https://journals.aps.org/prl/abstract/10.1103/PhysRevLett.124.225902
The paper was featured in CityU Research Stories:
https://www.cityu.edu.hk/research/stories/2020/08/06/high-frequency-transverse-phonons-amorphous-materials-observed-first-time
05 Jun 2020