Structural Relaxation and Mode Coupling in a Simple Liquid: Depolarized Light Scattering in Benzene

We have measured depolarized light scattering in liquid benzene over the whole accessible temperature range and over four decades in frequency. Between 40 and 180 GHz we find a susceptibility peak due to structural relaxation. This peak shows stretching and time-temperature scaling as known from $α$ relaxation in glass-forming materials. A simple mode-coupling model provides consistent fits of the entire data set. We conclude that structural relaxation in simple liquids and $α$ relaxation in glass-forming materials are physically the same. A deeper understanding of simple liquids is reached by applying concepts that were originally developed in the context of glass-transition research.

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