Rearrangements in hard-sphere glasses under oscillatory shear strain

Abstract

We investigate particle rearrangements in colloidal glasses subjected to oscillatory shear strain by the technique of light scattering (LS) echo. LS echo directly follows the motion of the particles through peaks (echoes) in the intensity autocorrelation function; the height of the peak measures the reversible motion in the sample. Polydisperse hard-sphere poly-methylmethacrylate particles were used to avoid crystallization under shear. The yielding behavior is monitored through irreversible particle rearrangements at several volume fractions in the glass phase region. At high volume fractions the glasses are found to yield at strains as high as 15% while the irreversible rearrangements have a more gradual onset with strain for low volume fraction glasses. The behavior of high order echoes at long times is related to the effects of shear on the frozen-in fluctuations of the glass.

Shear-induced breaking of cages in colloidal glasses: Scattering experiments and mode coupling theory

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From equilibrium to steady state: the transient dynamics of colloidal liquids under shear

“…It represents an improved version of cells previously used in light scattering and microscopy experiments [42,43,44]. For the present microscopy experiments, a specially designed microscope stage is used to mount the shear cell in the microscope.…”

A microscopic view of the yielding transition in concentrated emulsions

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