Critical scaling of compression-driven jamming of athermal frictionless spheres in suspension

We study numerically a system of athermal, overdamped, frictionless spheres, as in a non-Brownian suspension, in two and three dimensions. Compressing the system isotropically at a fixed rate (epsilon) over dot, we investigate the critical behavior at the jamming transition. The finite compression rate introduces a control timescale, which allows one to probe the critical timescale associated with jamming As was found previously for steady-state shear-driven jamming, we find for compression-driven jamming that pressure obeys a critical scaling relation as a function of packing fraction phi and compression rate (epsilon) over dot, and that the bulk viscosity p/(epsilon) over dot diverges upon jamming A scaling analysis determines the critical exponents associated with the compression-driven jamming transition. Our results suggest that stress-isotropic, compression-driven jamming may be in the same universality class as stress-anisotropic, shear-driven jamming.

Automated summary

Numerical study of compressing athermal, overdamped, frictionless spheres reveals critical behavior at the jamming transition, showing a critical scaling relation for pressure as a function of packing fraction phi and compression rate. Bulk viscosity diverges upon jamming, and analysis determines critical exponents associated with the compression-driven jamming transition. Results suggest stress-isotropic, compression-driven jamming may share universality class with stress-anisotropic, shear-driven jamming.