Transient asymmetry during elastic snap-through: The interplay between imperfections and oscillations

A symmetrically buckled arch whose boundaries are clamped at an angle has two stable equilibria: an inverted and a natural state. When the distance between the clamps is increased (i.e., the confinement is decreased), the system snaps from the inverted to the natural state. Depending on the rate at which the confinement is decreased ("unloading"), the symmetry of the system during snap through may change: slow unloading results in snap-through occurring asymmetrically, while fast unloading results in a symmetric snap-through. It has recently been shown [Wang, Phys. Rev. Lett. 132, 267201 (2024)0031-900710.1103/PhysRevLett.132.267201] that the transient asymmetry observed at slow unloading rates is the result of the amplification of small asymmetric precursor oscillations (shape perturbations) introduced dynamically to the system, even when the system itself is perfectly symmetric. In reality, however, imperfections, such as small asymmetries in the boundary conditions, are present too. Using numerical simulations and a simple toy model, we discuss the relative importance of imperfections in the boundary conditions and initial asymmetric shape perturbations in determining the transient asymmetry that is observed. We show that for small initial shape perturbations, the magnitude of the asymmetry grows in proportion to the size of the imperfection, but that when initial shape perturbations are large, imperfections are unimportant - the asymmetry of the system is dominated by the transient amplification of the initial asymmetric shape perturbations. We also show that the dominant origin of asymmetry changes the way that asymmetry grows dynamically. Our results may guide the engineering and design of snapping beams used to control insect-sized jumping robots.