HR: 14:25h
AN: S13D-04    [Abstracts]
TI: Shear Strain Localization in Elastodynamic Rupture Simulations
AU: * Daub, E G
EM: edaub@physics.ucsb.edu
AF: Physics Department, UC Santa Barbara, Broida Hall, Santa Barbara, CA 93106-9530, United States
AU: Carlson, J M
EM: carlson@physics.ucsb.edu
AF: Physics Department, UC Santa Barbara, Broida Hall, Santa Barbara, CA 93106-9530, United States
AB: We study how shear strain localization affects the propagation and dynamics of earthquake rupture. We model the fault as a layer of gouge governed by Shear Transformation Zone Theory, which provides a microscopic physical model for plastic deformation of the gouge, and a state variable for effective temperature. The effective temperature represents the local disorder in the gouge, and regions with higher effective temperature become more susceptible to plastic deformation. When strain is allowed to vary normal to the fault plane, a shear band instability permits sustained shear strain localization. We examine both homogeneous shear and localized shear in the spontaneous propagation of elastodynamic ruptures, and study how localization affects the stress dynamics, energy balance, and slip rate of earthquakes.
DE: 7209 Earthquake dynamics (1242)
DE: 8034 Rheology and friction of fault zones (8163)
SC: Seismology [S]
MN: 2007 Fall Meeting