Secondary relaxation in confined and bulk propylene carbonate

Journal article, 2003

Dielectric loss spectra of propylene carbonate in bulk and dissolved in a polymer matrix are investigated with focus on the currently debated excess wing. The spatial restrictions caused by the polymer matrix slow down the main structural (α) relaxation, while the excess wing continuously transforms towards a shoulder with increasing spatial restrictions. We show that the excess wing in a consistent manner can be described by a secondary relaxation with only a weak dependence of the concentration of polymer. Thus the results imply that the excess wing is due to a secondary relaxation submerged in the α-relaxation.