Title: Discrete breathers and low temperature reconstructive transformations

Authors: JFR Archilla, J Cuevas, MD Alba, M Naranjo and JM Trillo
(Poster pdf slides 1 Mb)

Abstract: Reconstructive transformations in layered silicates need a high temperature in order to be observed. However, very recently, some systems have been found where transformation can be studied at temperatures 600 C below the lowest experimental results previously reported We explore a possible explanation of this phenomena in terms of discrete breathers in the cation layer. We obtain the best possible parameters, calculate their energies and relate it with their statistics. The result is that although there are far fewer breathers than phonons, there are much more above the expected activations energy. Therefore, they are good candidates to explaint LTRT.

Nonlinear Physics: Condensed Matter, Dynamical Systems and Biophysics
Institut Henri Poincaré, Paris-V, France, May 30-31, 2005.