Diffusive surface instabilities induced by electromechanical loading

It has been recently established that mechanical stresses can induce a diffusive surface instability, which leads to crack formation without any energy barrier. This paper is aimed at investigating this instability mechanism for the more general case of an interface between two linear piezoelectric solids subjected to coupled electromechanical stresses. The energy variation associated with interface roughness is calculated using an extended Stroh formalism in anisotropic elasticity. The solutions obtained are applicable to a wide class of problems involving surfaces or interfaces in material systems with piezoelectric, anisotropic or isotropic properties.