The Probabilistic Physics of Sediment Transport - From Rarefied Bedload to Dense Force Chain Networks

Explore the probabilistic physics of sediment transport in this 47-minute conference talk that examines the transition from rarefied bedload to dense force chain networks. Delve into the soft matter physics underlying Earth's dynamic landscape, where materials like soil, mud, ice, and rocks exist in states between solid and fluid depending on timescales. Discover how Earth materials exhibit familiar soft matter behaviors including glassy dynamics, strain localization, memory encoding in microstructure, active matter properties, and complex yielding mechanisms. Learn about the novel challenges presented by the unique mixtures, excitations, geometries, and scales associated with geophysical systems. Understand how recent research demonstrates that frontiers in geophysics are simultaneously frontiers in soft matter physics, and how combining these fields can lead to advances in both disciplines. Gain insights into the theoretical and experimental approaches needed to understand complex transport phenomena in Earth materials, with applications to landslides, earthquakes, erosion, glaciers, and other geophysical processes. This presentation is part of a broader conference bringing together researchers from geophysics and soft matter physics to address open questions and encourage new collaborations in understanding Earth's soft matter behaviors.