Dynamical processes related to viscous flow in a supercooled arsenic selenide glass-forming liquid: Results from high-temperature 77Se NMR spectroscopy

Abstract Dynamical processes in supercooled AsSe9 liquid are studied using 1D and 2D 77Se NMR spectroscopic techniques. The results demonstrate the coexistence of two distinct dynamical processes: one is a slow process related to the chemical exchange between the various Se environments by bond scission/renewal and the other is the fast Se chain segmental motion, which leads to the rapid averaging of the chemical shift anisotropy. The timescales of these two processes become increasingly similar as the glass transition is approached from above. The slow process is found to be closely coupled to viscosity over the entire temperature range of investigation and its activation energy is consistent with the Se-Se/As bond energies. On the other hand, the activation energy of the fast process is significantly higher, which may be indicative of its cooperative nature. This process becomes coupled to viscosity only in the immediate vicinity of the glass transition.