Analysis of some stabilized low-order mixed finite element methods for Reissner-Mindlin plates (Q5956792)

New low-order mixed finite element methods are presented for the Reissner-Mindlin clamped plate problem, employing equal-order (bi)linear interpolants for rotation and lateral deflection, and a discontinuous constant (or constant locally enriched, or linear) interpolant for shear stress. Two stabilization terms are introduced, one of which controls the jump of the normal trace of shear stress across the interelement boundaries, and the other controls the rotation by modifying the thickness of the plate. The stabilization term for the normal shear stress discontinuity can be dropped when using macroelements for the deflection. All these methods are shown to be stable and optimal convergent in \(L^2\)-norm for the rotation and deflection, uniformly in the plate thickness. The aim of this paper is to show the possibility of some new plate elements, and it appears interesting to consider controlling the discontinuity of the tangential component of the shear.