Abstract
A state-of-the-art review of recent and on-going analytical and numerical research on dynamic crack branching in brittle solids is presented. First, fundamental experimental evidence concerning the physics of the branching mechanism is reviewed. Next, elastostatic work dealing with crack branching under an arbitrary angle and crack branching fracture criteria is summarized. The idealizations inherent in the mathematical models under investigation are emphasized. The analytical and numerical schemes that have recently yielded several much needed dynamic self-similar crack branching solutions are discussed. A perturbation-type approximation to the initial-boundary conditions whereby the artificial constraint of self-similarity is removed and variable velocity crack branching can be treated is discussed also. Finally, new directions and the needs of future research are identified.
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