This brief introductory article summarizes key findings from experiments and from computer simulations concerning the dramatic changes that commonly occur adjacent to sliding interfaces. We conclude that a wide range of observed features depends on a few basic processes (plastic deformation, interactions with the environment (including the counterface) and mechanical mixing) and that sliding leads to flow patterns similar to those expected in fluid flow.
This Letter focuses on the plastic response of a material, treated as a fluid, when subjected to sliding interactions. The analysis couples momentum conservation with material flow laws to predict velocity and strain-rate profiles that develop during sliding. The profiles depend on the strain-rate sensitivity. The spatial extent of the deformed zone is determined by strain-rate sensitivity, strength parameters, and the imposed sliding velocity.
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