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arXiv · 2412.18999

Self-Organized Pattern Formation in Geological Soft Matter

Julyan H. E. Cartwright·Charles S. Cockell·Lucas Goehring·Silvia Holler·Sean F. Jordan·Pamela Knoll·Electra Kotopoulou·Corentin C. Loron·Sean McMahon·Stephen W. Morris·Anna Neubeck·Carlos Pimentel·C. Ignacio Sainz-Díaz·Noushine Shahidzadeh·Piotr Szymczak
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Abstract

Geological materials are often seen as the antithesis of soft; rocks are hard. However, during the formation of minerals and rocks, all the systems we shall discuss, indeed geological materials in general, pass through a stage where they are soft. This occurs either because they form at a high temperature - igneous or metamorphic rock - or because they form at a lower temperature but in the presence of water - sedimentary rock. For this reason it is useful to introduce soft-matter concepts into the geological domain. There is a universality in the diverse instances of geological patterns that may be appreciated by looking at the common aspect in their formation of having passed through a stage as soft matter.

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BibTeXRIS

Julyan H. E. Cartwright, Charles S. Cockell, Lucas Goehring, Silvia Holler, Sean F. Jordan, Pamela Knoll, Electra Kotopoulou, Corentin C. Loron, Sean McMahon, Stephen W. Morris, Anna Neubeck, Carlos Pimentel, C. Ignacio Sainz-Díaz, Noushine Shahidzadeh, Piotr Szymczak. 2024-12-25. Self-Organized Pattern Formation in Geological Soft Matter. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.physrep.2026.03.004

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