Structure and distribution of arches in shaken hard sphere deposits

TL;DR

This study examines the formation, structure, and distribution of arches in shaken hard sphere deposits, revealing how spatial arrangements depend on packing density.

Contribution

It provides a detailed analysis of arch structures in shaken sphere deposits and how their spatial distribution varies with packing fraction.

Findings

Arch size and shape are unaffected by packing fraction.

Spatial distribution and orientation of arches depend on volume fraction.

Arches are identified using a connectivity criterion.

Abstract

We investigate the structure and distribution of arches formed by spherical, hard particles shaken in an external field after they come to rest. Arches (or bridges) are formed during a computer-simulated, non-sequential deposition of the spheres after each shaking cycle. We identify these arches by means of a connectivity criterion and study their structural characteristics and spatial distribution. We find that neither the size distribution nor the shape of the arches is strongly affected by the packing fraction of the deposit. Conversely, the spatial distribution and orientation of the bridges do depend on the volume fraction occupied by the spheres.