Micro-and nanoscale materials have remarkable mechanical properties, such as enhanced
strength and toughness, but they usually display sample-to-sample fluctuations and size …

We give a bird's-eye view of the plastic deformation of crystals aimed at the statistical
physics community, as well as a broad introduction to the statistical theories of forced rigid …

The evaluation of the fracture toughness of tungsten is required for the design of plasma-
facing components in order to ensure safe and durable operation in ITER reactor, being …

Basic fatigue properties captured by laboratory testing of small specimens are usually
applied to safety design of actual components. Nevertheless, their fatigue performances are …

We present a descriptive review of physical problems dealing with extreme values in several
fields of physics. We consider different physical situations involving random variables that …

Size effects on mechanical strength, ie the fact that larger structures fail under lower stresses
than smaller ones, already highlighted by Leonardo da Vinci and Edmée Mariotte centuries …

Statistical size scaling of compressive strength of quasi-brittle materials demands to define a
global stress parameter pertinent to the well accepted mechanism of shear stress induced …

Planes of weakness (ie cracks) existing in the soil matrix propagate, creating fracture
surfaces and fragmenting the clod into smaller clods. The cracking process defines the …

During dynamic instability, self-assembling microtubules (MTs) stochastically alternate
between phases of growth and shrinkage. This process is driven by the presence of two …

Particle degradation and fracture play an important role in natural granular flows and in
many applications of granular materials. We analyze the fracture properties of two …