Intermittencies in the Compression Process of a Model Granular Medium

Abstract
Measurements of the force required by a bidimensional piling to be compressed are reported. This force is shown to exhibit sudden fluctuations of large amplitude which strongly deviate from the mean value. We determine the scaling laws followed by the mean force and by the fluctuations as a function of the grain diameter, the grain mass, the aspect ratio, and the container filling. The mechanism of fluctuations is identified, and the passage to the Mohr-Coulomb plasticity behavior is recognized in the limit of very large systems.

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