Boundary compliance selects heterogeneous dynamics in shear-thickening suspensions

Fuente: arXiv
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Autores principales: Shi, Li-Xin, Hu, Meng-Fei, Zhao, Song-Chuan
Formato: Preprint
Publicado: 2026
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author Shi, Li-Xin
Hu, Meng-Fei
Zhao, Song-Chuan
author_facet Shi, Li-Xin
Hu, Meng-Fei
Zhao, Song-Chuan
contents The mechanical properties of confining boundaries can fundamentally alter the flow behaviour of shear-thickening suspensions. We study a dense cornstarch suspension sheared beneath a viscous silicone-oil layer, using the oil viscosity to tune boundary compliance. Flow visualisation and rheometry reveal two distinct regimes. With compliant boundaries, long-lived heterogeneities emerge via density waves or persistent clusters, maintained by a balance between interface deformation and particle rearrangement. With more resistant confinement, we observe transient jamming events, marked by abrupt spanning of load-bearing structures across the suspension thickness and the emergence of secondary stress waves. The onset stress of these events remains constant at the DST threshold, independent of bounding viscosity. Our results reveal that boundary compliance selects the lifetime and morphology of heterogeneous structures, offering a means to amplify otherwise short-lived microscopic processes and providing new insight into the interplay between shear thickening, shear jamming, and confinement mechanics.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2602_05669
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Boundary compliance selects heterogeneous dynamics in shear-thickening suspensions
Shi, Li-Xin
Hu, Meng-Fei
Zhao, Song-Chuan
Soft Condensed Matter
The mechanical properties of confining boundaries can fundamentally alter the flow behaviour of shear-thickening suspensions. We study a dense cornstarch suspension sheared beneath a viscous silicone-oil layer, using the oil viscosity to tune boundary compliance. Flow visualisation and rheometry reveal two distinct regimes. With compliant boundaries, long-lived heterogeneities emerge via density waves or persistent clusters, maintained by a balance between interface deformation and particle rearrangement. With more resistant confinement, we observe transient jamming events, marked by abrupt spanning of load-bearing structures across the suspension thickness and the emergence of secondary stress waves. The onset stress of these events remains constant at the DST threshold, independent of bounding viscosity. Our results reveal that boundary compliance selects the lifetime and morphology of heterogeneous structures, offering a means to amplify otherwise short-lived microscopic processes and providing new insight into the interplay between shear thickening, shear jamming, and confinement mechanics.
title Boundary compliance selects heterogeneous dynamics in shear-thickening suspensions
topic Soft Condensed Matter
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2602.05669