Hyperuniform Jammed Sphere Packings Have Anomalous Material Properties

Abstract

A spatial distribution is hyperuniform if it has local density fluctuations that vanish in the limit of long length scales. Hyperuniformity is a well-known property of both crystals and quasicrystals. Of recent interest, however, is disordered hyperuniformity: the presence of hyperuniform scaling without long-range configurational order. Jammed granular packings have been proposed as an example of disordered hyperuniformity, but recent numerical investigation has revealed that many jammed systems instead exhibit a complex set of distinct behaviors at long, emergent length scales. We use the Voronoi tessellation as a tool to define a set of rescaling transformations that can impose hyperuniformity on an arbitrary weighted point process, and show that these transformations can be used in simulations to iteratively generate hyperuniform, mechanically stable packings of athermal soft spheres. These hyperuniform jammed packings display atypical mechanical properties, particularly in the low-frequency phononic excitations, which exhibit an isolated band of highly collective modes and a band gap around zero frequency. :contentReference[oaicite:0]{index=0}

Publication Details

• Authors: Jack R. Dale, James D. Sartor, R. Cameron Dennis, and Eric I. Corwin
• Journal: Physical Review E
• Volume: 106
• Issue: 2
• Article Number: 024903
• Publication Date: August 18, 2022
• DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevE.106.024903

Key Findings

• Voronoi Rescaling Technique: Developed a method using Voronoi tessellation to impose hyperuniformity on arbitrary point processes, enabling the generation of mechanically stable, hyperuniform packings.
• Anomalous Mechanical Properties: Identified atypical low-frequency phononic excitations in hyperuniform packings, characterized by an isolated band of highly collective modes and a band gap around zero frequency.

This study provides a novel approach to generating hyperuniform jammed sphere packings and reveals their unique mechanical properties, contributing to the broader understanding of disordered hyperuniform materials.