A THERMODYNAMIC THEORY OF SUPERCOOLED LIQUIDS

A never thermodynamic theory of the properties of supercooled liquids as they get glassy is presented. It is based on the postulated existen ce of a narrowly avoided thermodynamic phase transition at a temperatu re T greater than or equal to T-m, where T-m is the melting point, an d the ''avoidance'' is due to geometric frustration. We show that as a consequence two large emergent length scales develop at temperatures less than T, and we also show that this picture is consistent with ap propriate statistical mechanical models. A theoretical expression is o btained which permits collapse of the viscosity versus temperature of all known glass-formers onto a single master-curve.