Abstract
Inelastic collapse, the process in which a number of partially inelastic balls dissipate their energy through an infinite number of collisions in a finite amount of time, is studied for three balls on an infinite line and on a ring (i.e., a line segment with periodic boundary conditions). Inelastic collapse has been shown to exist for systems in which collisions occur with a coefficient of restitution independent of the relative velocities of the colliding particles. In the present study, a more realistic model is assumed for for relative velocity equal to zero, and decreases monotonically for increasing relative velocity. With this model, inelastic collapse does not occur for three balls on a line or a ring.
- Received 30 May 1997
DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevE.57.4831
©1998 American Physical Society