title: Space-time thermodynamics of the glass transition.
abstract: We consider the probability distribution for fluctuations in dynamical action and similar quantities related to dynamic heterogeneity. We argue that the so-called "glass transition" is a manifestation of low action tails in these distributions where the entropy of trajectory space is subextensive in time. These low action tails are a consequence of dynamic heterogeneity and an indication of phase coexistence in trajectory space. The glass transition, where the system falls out of equilibrium, is then an order-disorder phenomenon in space-time occurring at a temperature T(g), which is a weak function of measurement time. We illustrate our perspective ideas with facilitated lattice models and note how these ideas apply more generally.
authors.affiliation: Department of Chemistry, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720-1460, USA.
authors.forename: Mauro
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Merolle
authors.forename: Juan P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Garrahan
authors.forename: David
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Chandler