Related papers: Force network ensemble: a new approach to static g…
An ensemble approach for force networks in static granular packings is developed. The framework is based on the separation of packing and force scales, together with an a-priori flat measure in the force phase space under the constraints…
For packings of hard but not perfectly rigid particles, the length scales that govern the packing geometry and the contact forces are well separated. This separation of length scales is explored in the force network ensemble, where one…
Transmission of forces in static granular materials are studied within the framework of the force network ensemble, by numerically evaluating the mechanical response of hexagonal packings of frictionless grains and rectangular packings of…
Force networks form the skeleton of static granular matter. They are the key ingredient to mechanical properties, such as stability, elasticity and sound transmission, which are of utmost importance for civil engineering and industrial…
The physical properties of granular materials have been extensively studied in recent years. So far, however, there exists no theoretical framework which can explain the observations in a unified manner beyond the phenomenological jamming…
We present an experiment in which a horizontal quasi-2D granular system with a fixed neighbor network is cyclically compressed and decompressed over 1000 cycles. We remove basal friction by floating the particles on a thin air cushion, so…
We present a minimalistic approach to simulations of force transmission through granular systems. We start from a configuration containing cohesive (tensile) contact forces and use an adaptive procedure to find the stable configuration with…
The heterogeneous force networks in static granular media --- formed from contact forces between grains and spanning from boundary to boundary in the packing --- are distinguished from other network structures in that they must satisfy…
A remarkable feature of static granular matter is the distribution of force along intricate networks. Even regular inter-particle contact networks produce wildly inhomogeneous force networks where certain "chains" of particles carry forces…
We study the geometry of forces in some simple models for granular stackings. The information contained in geometry is complementary to that in the distribution of forces in a single inter-particle contact, which is more widely studied. We…
Useful definitions and properties pertaining to static granular packings, in which a contact network is able to support externally applied forces and maintain equilibrium for varying loads, are reviewed and discussed. It is explained how…
Diverging correlation lengths on either side of the jamming transition are used to formulate a rheological model of granular shear flow, based on the propagation of stress through force chain networks. The model predicts three distinct flow…
A scenario for yielding of granular matter is presented by considering the ensemble of force networks for a given contact network and applied shear stress $\tau$. As $\tau$ is increased, the probability distribution of contact forces…
We study theoretically the complex network of forces that is responsible for the static structure and properties of granular materials. We present detailed calculations for a model in which the fluctuations in the force distribution arise…
We characterize the force state of shear-loaded granular matter by relating the macroscopic stress to statistical properties of the force network. The purely repulsive nature of the interaction between grains naturally provides an upper…
In the present letter a method to find a proper expression for the force distribution inside a granular sample in static equilibrium is proposed. The method is based in statistical mechanics and the force distribution is obtained by…
We investigate the role of local force balance in the transition from a microcanonical ensemble of static granular packings, characterized by an invariant stress, to a canonical ensemble. Packings in two dimensions admit a reciprocal…
We experimentally determine ensemble-averaged responses of granular packings to point forces, and we compare these results to recent models for force propagation in a granular material. We used 2D granular arrays consisting of photoelastic…
We numerically study the distribution P(f) of contact forces in frictionless bead packs, by averaging over the ensemble of all possible force network configurations. We resort to umbrella sampling to resolve the asymptotic decay of P(f) for…
The force network ensemble is one of the most promising statistical descriptions of granular media, with an entropy accounting for all force configurations at mechanical equilibrium consistent with some external stress. It is possible to…