Slow slip and the transition from fast to slow fronts in the rupture of frictional interfaces.

ABSTRACT: The failure of the population of microjunctions forming the frictional interface between two solids is central to fields ranging from biomechanics to seismology. This failure is mediated by the propagation along the interface of various types of rupture fronts, covering a wide range of velocities. Among them are the so-called slow fronts, which are recently discovered fronts much slower than the materials' sound speeds. Despite intense modeling activity, the mechanisms underlying slow fronts remain elusive. Here, we introduce a multiscale model capable of reproducing both the transition from fast to slow fronts in a single rupture event and the short-time slip dynamics observed in recent experiments. We identify slow slip immediately following the arrest of a fast front as a phenomenon suf

SUBMITTER: Tromborg JK 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4066514 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Jun

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature