%0 Journal Article
%T Bond-Breaking Relaxation Governs Onset of the Fracture Instability
%A Farid F. Abrahameffective
%J The Open Mechanics Journal
%D 2007
%I 
%R 10.2174/1874158400701010038]
%X A dynamic crack will travel in a straight path up to a material-dependent critical speed beyond which its path becomes erratic. Predicting this critical speed and discovering the origin of this instability are two outstanding problems in fracture mechanics. We recently discovered a simple scaling model based on an effective elastic modulus that gives successful predictions for this critical speed. We now show that a simple atomic picture based on broken-bond relaxation at the dynamic crack tip provides an explanation for the origin of the effective elastic modulus.
%U http://www.benthamscience.com/open/tomechj/articles/V001/38TOMECHJ.htm