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Multi-electrode Array Recordings of Neuronal Avalanches in Organotypic Cultures
Published on: August 1, 2011
Avalanche precursors of failure in hierarchical fuse networks
Paolo Moretti1, Bastien Dietemann2, Nosaibeh Esfandiary2
1Department of Materials Science, WW8-Materials Simulation, FAU Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, Dr.-Mack-Straße 77, 90762, Fürth, Germany. paolo.moretti@fau.de.
Abstract:
We study precursors of failure in hierarchical random fuse network models which can be considered as idealizations of hierarchical (bio)materials where fibrous assemblies are held together by multi-level (hierarchical) cross-links. When such structures are loaded towards failure, the patterns of precursory avalanche activity exhibit generic scale invariance: irrespective of load, precursor activity is characterized by power-law avalanche size distributions without apparent cut-off, with power-law exponents that decrease continuously with increasing load. This failure behavior and the ensuing super-rough crack morphology differ significantly from the findings in non-hierarchical structures.
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