Slip pulse earthquakes
Event details
| Date | 12.10.2026 |
| Hour | 12:15 › 13:15 |
| Speaker | Eran Bouchbinder, Professor at Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel |
| Location |
GC B1 10
|
| Category | Conferences - Seminars |
| Event Language | English |
Abstract:
The spatiotemporal dynamics of frictional systems, ranging from engineering interfaces in mechanical joints to tectonic faults that host earthquakes, are governed by the propagation of interfacial rupture. A prominent rupture mode is self-healing slip pulses, which feature a finite slipping zone. The physics of slip pulses is qualitatively different from their expanding crack-like counterparts, as they involve the interplay between leading-edge contact breakage and trailing-edge re-strengthening (healing). The latter is intrinsically related to generic properties of frictional interactions at contacting interfaces, absent in ordinary fracture of bulk materials. In this talk, I will review a recently developed theory of two-dimensional slip pulses, which revealed intriguing dynamical properties of slip pulses and provided extensive predictions for their spatiotemporal evolution. The theoretical predictions are supported by large-scale numerical simulations and, more recently, by extensive laboratory experiments. The implications and potential applications of the theory will be discussed as time permits.
References:
Biography:
Eran Bouchbinder is a Professor at Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel. He leads a theoretical physics group who studies various non-equilibrium phenomena in spatially extended systems, addressing basic problems in statistical physic, condensed-matter physics, biophysics, materials physics, and geophysics. His work also involves close collaborations with computational and experimental groups.
The spatiotemporal dynamics of frictional systems, ranging from engineering interfaces in mechanical joints to tectonic faults that host earthquakes, are governed by the propagation of interfacial rupture. A prominent rupture mode is self-healing slip pulses, which feature a finite slipping zone. The physics of slip pulses is qualitatively different from their expanding crack-like counterparts, as they involve the interplay between leading-edge contact breakage and trailing-edge re-strengthening (healing). The latter is intrinsically related to generic properties of frictional interactions at contacting interfaces, absent in ordinary fracture of bulk materials. In this talk, I will review a recently developed theory of two-dimensional slip pulses, which revealed intriguing dynamical properties of slip pulses and provided extensive predictions for their spatiotemporal evolution. The theoretical predictions are supported by large-scale numerical simulations and, more recently, by extensive laboratory experiments. The implications and potential applications of the theory will be discussed as time permits.
References:
- The dynamics of unsteady frictional slip pulses [PNAS 120, e2309374120 (2023)]
- An equation of motion for unsteady frictional slip pulses [EPSL 678, 119831 (2026)]
- Lab earthquakes confirm the theory of frictional slip pulses [arXiv:2608.26065 (2026)]
Biography:
Eran Bouchbinder is a Professor at Weizmann Institute of Science, Israel. He leads a theoretical physics group who studies various non-equilibrium phenomena in spatially extended systems, addressing basic problems in statistical physic, condensed-matter physics, biophysics, materials physics, and geophysics. His work also involves close collaborations with computational and experimental groups.
Practical information
- Informed public
- Free
Organizer
- LSMS
Contact
- Prof. Jean-François Molinari