A dislocation theory of crystal melting and of glasses

Abstract

The dislocation theory of the liquid state is refined by an accurate assessment of the interaction energy between dislocations. This shows a screening phenomenon which gives a first-order transition rather than the second-order transition of simpler theories. Within this framework, a theory of glass is constructed in which the dislocation network is taken to have a long relaxation time and can be frozen in, whilst other effects such as vibrations attain thermal equilibrium. Such an idealization permits a calculation of glass thermodynamics.