title: Geometrical characterization of hard-sphere systems.
abstract: By using molecular dynamics simulations on a large number of hard spheres and the Voronoï tessellation we characterize hard-sphere systems geometrically at any packing fraction eta along the different branches of the phase diagram. Crystallization of disordered packings occurs only for a small range of packing fraction. For the other packing fractions the system behaves as either a fluid (stable or metastable) or a glass. We have studied the evolution of the statistics of the Voronoï tessellation during crystallization and characterized the apparition of order by an order parameter (Q(6)) built from spherical harmonics.
authors.affiliation: Groupe Matière Condensée et Matériaux, UMR CNRS 6626, Université de Rennes I, 35042 Rennes Cedex, France.
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Richard
authors.forename: L
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Oger
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Troadec
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Gervois