Discussion on electromagnetic crack face boundary conditions for the fracture mechanics of magneto-electro-elastic materials

This paper discusses electromagnetic boundary conditions on crack faces in magneto-electroelastic materials, where piezoelectric, piezomagnetic and magnetoelectric effects are coupled. A notch of finite thickness in these materials is also addressed. Four idealized electromagnetic boundary conditions assumed for the crack-faces are separately investigated, i.e. (a) electrically and magnetically impermeable (crack-face), (b) electrically impermeable and magnetically permeable, (c) electrically permeable and magnetically impermeable, and (d) electrically and magnetically permeable. The influence of the notch thickness on important parameters, such as the field intensity factors, the energy release rate at the notch tips and the electromagnetic fields inside the notch, are studied and the results are obtained in closed-form. Results under different idealized electromagnetic boundary conditions on the crack-face are compared, and the applicability of these idealized assumptions is discussed.