Propagative slipping modes in a spring-block model

Abstract

Two transitions are observed in a version of the Burridge-Knopoff model of a tectonic fault. The first transition has already been reported and occurs when the velocity scale of the friction force is varied. We trace the origin of this transition back to what is happening for a single free block. The second transition is observed when varying the speed of sound of the system and concerns the possibility that the system exhibits solitary wave solutions. We provide a necessary condition for the system having a stable solitary wave solution. This condition, which involves a single parameter formed with three of the four parameters of the system, allows one to interpret some of the numerical results.