A Theory of Non-Linear Elasticity Compatible With the Murnaghan Equation of State

We present an equation of state for a cubic non-linear elastic material in a general state of finite strain. For hydrostatic pressure, the predictions closely follow Murnaghan's well-known equation of state. At 170 kbar, our model differs from Murnaghan's equation by only 1.3%, which contrasts with the currently accepted non-linear elasticity theory that differs by 10% at this pressure. The theory is based on expressing the variation of the elastic constants as a linear function of stress rather than strain. We define a different set of third-order elastic constants, which involve a derivative with respect to stress, and relate these to the conventional third-order elastic constants. We apply the model to GaAs under hydrostatic pressure and we compare the predictions of the conventional non-linear theory with those of the model we present.