Mechanical characterization of glassy polymers : quantitative prediction of their short- and long-term responses

In this chapter the relevant phenomena that dominate the mechanical performance of polymer glasses are discussed. Mechanical properties as measured in short-term experiments are directly linked to their long-term performance. The molecular processes that are of influence are investigated. The chapter is divided into two sections: The first deals with the phenomenology of the deformation, and the second addresses the constitutive modeling and precise characterization of polymers, needed to model their mechanical response.