COMPACTION AND DENSITY FLUCTUATIONS IN VIBRATED GRANULAR MEDIA

We report measurements of the density of a vibrated granular material as a function of time or taps. The material studied consists of monodisperse spherical glass beads confined to a long, thin cylindrical tube. Changes in vibration intensity are used to induce transitions between two steady state densities that depend on the intensity of the vibrations. We find a complex time evolution similar to previous work on the irreversible relaxation from a loose state toward a steady state. In addition, frequency dependent third order moments of the density fluctuations are measured. The data indicate a coupling between large variations in density on one time scale and noise power over a broad range of higher-frequency scales.