Earthquakes, landslides, glaciers and other natural catastrophic failure processes involve friction and fracture in complex materials with structures on scales that rarely exist in other applications. In the earthquake physics lab, we use a combination of analog materials and novel characterization methods to translate our understanding of breakage and sudden slip to the scales and systems relevant for natural hazards.
Our current experiments involve granular flow, transparent rubber and photoelastic materials. We have two TA rheometers, a Nanonovea mechanical tester and indenter, 3-D printers, multiple high-speed cameras and facilities to manufacture bench-top experiments.
