Elizabeth Land Templeton

about me

I recently defended my disseretation, "Effects of Inelastic Off-Fault Deformation on the Dynamics of Earthquake Rupture and Branch Fault Activation." I completed my Ph.D. research with Prof. James R. Rice at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences. My research has involved using applied mechanics principles to study dynamic earthquake rupture. My interests include: Dynamic finite-element modeling of shear rupture propagation in branched fault systems; development of off-fault damage zones; elastic-Coulomb plastic models for off-fault response. My thesis work at Harvard involves quantifying the effects during dynamic earthquake rupture of complexities in fault geometry, such as bends, branches and step-overs, and elastic-Coulomb plastic off-fault material behavior. In particular, I am investigating the likelihood of subsidiary fault activation during large tsunami producing earthquakes, as well as the effects of branching fault activation on ground motions near the proposed nuclear waste repository site at Yucca Mountain, NV.

contact information

Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences
Pierce Hall, 327
29 Oxford St.
Cambridge, MA 02138
voice: (617) 495-9404
email: templet {at} fas {dot} harvard {dot} edu or Elizabeth {dot} Templeton {at} gmail {dot} com