Tailoring the flow of soft glasses by soft additives.
We examine the vitrification and melting of asymmetric star polymer mixtures by combining rheological measurements with mode coupling theory. We identify two types of glassy states, a single glass, in which the small component is fluid in the glassy matrix of the big one, and a double glass, in which both components are vitrified. Addition of small-star polymers leads to melting of both glasses, and the melting curve has a nonmonotonic dependence on the star-star size ratio. The phenomenon opens new ways for externally steering the rheological behavior of soft matter systems.
Dipartimento di Fisica and CNR-INFM-SOFT, Università di Roma La Sapienza, Rome, Italy.
E
E
Zaccarelli
C
C
Mayer
A
A
Asteriadi
C N
CN
Likos
F
F
Sciortino
J
J
Roovers
H
H
Iatrou
N
N
Hadjichristidis
P
P
Tartaglia
H
H
Löwen
D
D
Vlassopoulos
D003198:Computer Simulation; D005898:Glass / Q000737:chemistry*; D044085:Microfluidics / Q000379:methods*; D008956:Models, Chemical; D044367:Phase Transition; D011108:Polymers / Q000737:chemistry*; D014783:Viscosity
D011108:Polymers