A simple nonlinear equation for structural relaxation in glasses

A wide range of glassy and disordered materials exhibit complex, non-exponential, structural relaxation (aging). We propose a simple nonlinear rate equation d\delta/dt = a [1-exp (b\delta)], where '\delta' is the normalized deviation of a macroscopic variable from its equilibrium value, to describe glassy relaxation. Analysis of extensive experimental data shows that this equation quantitatively captures structural relaxation, where 'a' and 'b' are both temperature-, and more importantly, history-dependent parameters. This analysis explicitly demonstrates that structural relaxation cannot be accurately described by a single non-equilibrium variable. Relaxation rates extracted from the data imply the existence of cooperative rearrangements on a super-molecular scale.