Fractographic aspects of crack branching instability using a phase-field model

A phase-field model of a crack front propagating in a three-dimensional brittle material is used to study the fractographic patterns induced by the branching instability. The numerical results of this model give rise to crack surfaces that are similar to those obtained in various experimental situations. Depending on applied loading configurations and initial conditions, we show that the branching instability is either restricted to a portion of the crack front or revealed through quasi-two-dimensional branches. For the former, the crack front leaves on the main broken surface either aligned or disordered parabolic marks. For the latter, fractography reveals the so called échelon cracks showing that branching instability can also induce crack front fragmentation.