Mid-Term Report Summary - STANPAS (Statistical and Nonlinear Physics of Amorphous Solids) At the center of the present ERC grant are the material properties of amorphous solids. Such solids are formed as the result of the so-called `glass transition' in which super-cooled liquids are quickly quenched to low temperatures without having time to crystallize. Included in this class of materials are regular glasses, metallic glasses, colloidal glasses, polymeric glasses etc. We have succeeded to develop a microscopic atomistic theory that is general enough to encompass (with necessary modifications) all these types of glasses. As a result we can supplement, and sometime replace, some usual engineering approaches that lacked the ability to predict accurately the phenomena of interest in such systems. In particular we could analyze what determines the strength and toughness of amorphous materials, providing a theoretical basis for this highly important technological issue.Among the highlights of our research is an atomistic theory of `shear banding', a common phenomenon of strong concentration of shear along thin bands in stressed solids, leading usually to fracture and failure. Another highlight is a totally novel approach to metallic glasses that have magnetic properties. We could offer an atomistic model for such materials that reveals exciting physics that we unfold systematically in the recent months. Lastly, we have made significant contacts with experimental labs to work on issues of common interest, using our theoretical results to help analyzing existing experiments and plan new ones.
