Anticorrelation between the elastic ratio γ and the b-value in a spring-block SOC-model of earthquakes

In the present work we propose that some results recently published by our group (Perez-Oregon et al. 2018 J Seismol. 22 1025-1035) can be used for explaining qualitatively a correlation established by Ruff and Kanamori (1980 Phys. Earth Planet. Inter. 23 240-252) between the age of tectonic plates and the magnitude of the maximum characteristic earthquake of the corresponding tectonic zone. In addition, an equivalent behavior between sliding surfaces made with sandpapers also can be explained. These possible explanations stemms from a computational model proposed by Olami et al. (1992 Phys. Rev. Lett. 68 1244-1247) for emulating synthetic earthquakes by means of a cellular automaton applied to a dynamic system in a self-organized critical state. (paper)