Nanoscale Damage Production by Dynamic Tensile Rupture in ??Quartz

The creation of new fractures during an earthquake produces rock damage and contributes to the dissipation strain energy. During dynamic rupture propagation, tensile microfractures can form in process zone domains around a fault that host large transient stress. These produce fragments with wide range sizes. Using molecular dynamics simulations, we model propagation ?-quartz under conditions stress occur propagation. Our results show for speeds below 15% Rayleigh wave speed, propagate linearly. At higher speeds, fracture undergoes path instabilities crack oscillations microbranching leading formation nanoscale roughness fragments. This before any significant slip has occurred on fault. produced nanoparticles may control further energy frictional slip.