They attribute this counterintuitive behaviour to new “strengthening mechanisms” that are activated in the material by the higher strain rate. In the new study, the researchers breached new ground by imparting an even greater strain rate using cutting-edge material-testing technologies. Strain rate measures the rate at which strain changes. The new study throws a spanner in this thinking by revealing a change in the material’s strength response above a strain rate of around 1 million /s. Even at room temperature (20 degrees C), for example, the study found that the copper substrate had four-times more dynamic strength under a strain rate of 1 million /s than without any strain.

Source: The Hindu May 28, 2024 14:06 UTC