Incoherent quasi-elastic neutron scattering (IQENS) by ethylene glycol in confined space

With the aim of studying the confinement influence on the molecular mobility of H-bonded systems, high-resolution quasi-elastic neutron scattering data were obtained for ethylene glycol [EG: H(O–CH2–CH2)OH] in the bulk state at T=40°C and confined into 25Å pores of a sol–gel porous glass, at T=−35°C and 40°C. The experimental data are discussed in terms of the α-relaxation dynamics predicted by mode-coupling theory for supercooled liquids. We verified that an Havriliak–Negami profile, that is verified when a distribution of relaxation times is present, represents a good description for the measured QENS translational spectral line shape.