Abstract
Our enigmatic title,The Constraint of Discord, is taken from a paper by J. Joly [1, 2] which was published in 1886 (see Fig, 1). Joly was interested in using accurate calorimetry to identify minerals by measuring their specific heats. This led him to consider the difference between crystalline and amorphous forms of the same mineral. He observed that “it may be stated as true generally that in the crystal the specific heat is lower than that in the amorphous state.” With a boldness characteristic of Dublin’s scientific community during that period, Joly went on to suggest fundamental reasons for such a finding. Picturing a solid as consisting of molecules, in accord with the general opinion of that time, he considered the constraints acting on the molecular vibrations in an ordered and disordered environment. These arguments predate the development of a proper understanding of structure (by crystallography) and specific heat (by quantum theory), so they are hopelessly misguided. But this is, so far as I am aware, the earliest example of the framing of the question: How is the local atomic arrangement in an amorphous solid related to its properties ?
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Weaire, D. (1985). The Constraint of Discord. In: Adler, D., Schwartz, B.B., Steele, M.C. (eds) Physical Properties of Amorphous Materials. Institute for Amorphous Studies Series. Springer, Boston, MA. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4899-2260-1_4
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