Pattern formation in granular systems / Formação de padrões em meios granulares
AUTOR(ES)
Sandro Farias Pinto
DATA DE PUBLICAÇÃO
2006
RESUMO
In this work we study the pattern formation in the interface between two types of granular materials in a Hele-Shaw cell. Different types of patterns, ranging from almost circular to fingered ones were observed, varying the ratio between the size of the grains and the cell spacing. The transition from patterns with fingers to rounded patterns seems to be continuous. The Fourier transform was obtained for the patterns with and without fingers. Patterns that present fingers showed mode selection, contrary to what happens for the rounded patterns. The dependence of the gyration radius and the number of particles at the border of the pattern was studied as a function of the number of particles inside the pattern. We observed that the gyration radius as well as the number of particles at the border of the pattern follow power laws. Analyses of the pattern border roughness showed that the Hurst exponent decreases as the patterns become more rounded. The roughness does not obey a power law with time. For the patterns with fingers the roughness increases with time and as the patterns become more regular it seem to tend to a saturation value. Finger formation is explained in terms of force transmission through the grains.
ASSUNTO(S)
fractals formação de padrões fisica da materia condensada meios granulares fractais granular systems pattern formation
