Energy-landscape network approach to the glass transition

Abstract

We study the energy-landscape network of Lennard-Jones clusters as a model of a glass forming system. We find the stable basins and the first order saddles connecting them, and identify them with the network nodes and links, respectively. We analyze the network properties and model the system's evolution. Using the model, we explore the system's response to varying cooling rates, and reproduce many of the glass transition properties. We also find that the static network structure gives rise to a critical temperature where a percolation transition breaks down the space of configurations into disconnected components. Finally, we discuss the possibility of studying the system mathematically with a trap-model generalized to networks.