Creep

Summary

Creep is the slow growth of the deformation of a solid that is held under a constant load. It matters at high temperatures for metals, as in turbine blades, and at room temperature for polymers, concrete, ice and rock. Creep under constant stress is the counterpart of stress relaxation under constant strain, and both are signatures of viscoelasticity and viscoplasticity. In engineering it limits the service life of parts, which can fail by creep rupture well below their short-term strength.