Description:
AbstractA low order finite element based on a Hellinger‐Reissner formulation with weak enforcement of the stress symmetry is presented. The novel element gets along without any additional degrees of freedom beside the displacements and stresses. Therein, lowest order Raviart‐Thomas interpolation is utilized for the stresses and a C0 continuous polynomial interpolation of first order is adopted for the displacements. This combination leads to a very efficient and robust element formulation which will be depicted on a couple of numerical examples.