Temperature dependence in electron glass dynamics

Glass is a unique state of matter which appears in many physical systems, including amorphous SiO₂ (window glass), spin glass, polymer glass, etc., all characterized by the lack of internal order and extremely slow dynamics. The electron glass is a newcomer to this field. In these systems strong Coulomb interactions between localized electrons result in a slow relaxation of the conductance towards equilibrium.

In my talk I will present experimental results obtained on discontinuous metallic films which were fabricated at cryogenic temperatures, below the glass temperature. The conductance dynamics in these samples depend not only on the ambient temperature, but also on the maximal temperature they were exposed to, Tmax.  Based on a model of hopping between metastable states, I will claim that this dependence on Tmax may provide insight into the dynamics of many glassy systems.