Infinitesimally affine deformations of a hypersurface

Abstract

Affine deformations serve as basic examples in the continuum mechanics of deformable three-dimensional bodies (usually referred to as homogeneous deformations). They preserve parallelism of straight lines, and are often used as an approximation to general deformations. However, when the deformable body is a membrane, a shell or an interface modeled by a surface, parallelism is defined by the affine connection of this surface. In this work we study the infinitesimally affine time-dependent deformations (motions) of such a continuum, but in a more general context, by considering that it is modeled by a Riemannian hypersurface. First we prove certain equivalent formulas for the variation of the connection of the hypersurface. Some of these formulas are expressed in terms of geometrical quantities, and others in terms of kinematical quantities of the deforming continuum. The latter is achieved by using an adapted version of the polar decomposition theorem, frequently used in continuum mechanics to analyze motion. We also apply our results to special motions like tangential and normal motions. Further, we find necessary and sufficient conditions for this variation to be zero (infinitesimal affine motions), providing insight on the form of these motions and the kind of hypersurfaces that allow such motions. Finally, we give some specific examples of mechanical interest which demonstrate motions that are infinitesimally affine but not infinitesimally isometric.