Energy-flux control of the steady-state, creep, and dynamic slip modes of faults

Faults exhibit a gamut of slip styles from stable sliding and creep events to earthquakes. These slip styles are affected by the fault properties, e.g., weakening or strengthening, and the properties of the loading system. Here, we investigate the poorly understood effect of energy-flux to the fault that should equal or exceed the energy-dissipation-rate along the slipping fault. We explore the relationship between energy-flux and slip style in shear experiments along granite and diorite laboratory faults, during which the faults were subjected to controlled energy-flux, and responded spontaneously to it. The monitored evolution of slip-velocity, shear stress, and slip-distance revealed three slip styles that depend on the applied energy-flux: (1) steady-state slip; (2) spontaneous creep events of small displacement with negligible weakening; and (3) spontaneous, unstable events with slip-velocities up to 0.8 m/s, slip-distances up to 0.5 m, and stress-drops up to 1 MPa, which are comparable to observed values of moderate earthquakes. These slip styles are similar in character to those observed along natural faults. We further propose that the rate of energy flow from crustal blocks can control the slip velocity during earthquakes.