Origin of compression-induced failure in brittle solids under shock loading

The origin of compression-induced failure in brittle solids has been a subject of debate. Using in situ, highspeed, strain field mapping of a representative material, polymethylmethacrylate, we reveal that shock loading leads to heterogeneity in a compressive strain field, which in turn gives rise to localized lateral tension and shear through Poisson's effects, and, subsequently, localized microdamage. A failure wave nucleates from the impact surface and its propagation into the microdamage zone is self-sustained, triggering interior failure. Its velocity increases with increasing shock strength and eventually approaches the shock velocity. The seemingly puzzling phenomena observed in previous experiments, including incubation time, failure wave velocity variations, and surface roughness effects, can all be explained consistently with the nucleation and growth of the microdamage, and the effects of loading strength and preexisting defects.