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A constitutive model is developed for the mechanical response of elastomers at finite strains. A polymer is treated as a network of linear chains linked by permanent (chemical crosslinks) and temporary (entanglements and van der Waals…
The links of a physical network cannot cross, which often forces the network layout into non-optimal entangled states. Here we define a network fabric as a two-dimensional projection of a network and propose the average crossing number as a…
The structural properties of a linear polymer and its evolution in time have a strong bearing on its anisotropic stress response. The mean-square bond length and mean bond angle are the critical parameters that influence the time-varying…
Both entangled and unentangled polymer melts exhibit stress overshoots when subject to shearing flow. The size of the overshoot depends on the applied shear rate and is related to relaxation mechanisms such as reptation, chain stretch and…
We visualize entanglements in polymer melts using molecular dynamics simulation. A bead at an entanglement interacts persistently for long times with the non-bonded beads (those excluding the adjacent ones in the same chain). The…
The stretching response of polymer chains fundamentally determines the mechanical properties of polymer networks. In this Letter, we develop a statistical mechanics model that incorporates both bond stretching and bond angle deformation,…
We consider a three-dimensional network of aqueous droplets joined by single lipid bilayers to form a cohesive, tissue-like material. The droplets in these networks can be programmed to have distinct osmolarities so that osmotic gradients…
Understanding the structural complexity and predictability of complex networks is a central challenge in network science. Although recent studies have revealed a relationship between compression-based entropy and link prediction…
We use Brownian dynamics simulations and advanced topological profiling methods to characterize the out-of-equilibrium evolution of self-entanglement in linear polymers confined into nano-channels and under periodic compression. We…
Graphene-based nanostructured systems and van-der-Waals heterostructures comprise a material class of growing technological and scientific importance. Joining materials with vastly different properties, polymer-graphene heterosystems…
In this work, we explore the dynamics of active entangled chains using molecular dynamics simulations of a modified Kremer-Grest model. The active chains are diluted in a mesh of very long passive linear chains, to avoid constraint release…
Complex networks structures have been extensively used for describing complex natural and technological systems, like the Internet or social networks. More recently complex network theory has been applied to quantum systems, where complex…
We use optical tweezers microrheology and fluorescence microscopy to apply nonlinear microscale strains to entangled and crosslinked actin networks, and measure the resulting stress and actin filament deformations. We couple nonlinear…
Peeling, shearing, and sliding are important mechanical phenomena in van der Waals solids. However, theoretically they have been studied mostly using minimal periodic cells and in the context of accurate quantum simulations. Here, we…
Many dynamical phenomena in complex systems concern spreading that plays out on top of networks with changing architecture over time -- commonly known as temporal networks. A complex system's proneness to facilitate spreading phenomena,…
A foremost challenge in modern network science is the inverse problem of reconstruction (inference) of coupling equations and network topology from the measurements of the network dynamics. Of particular interest are the methods that can…
Entangled states are ubiquitous amongst fibrous materials, whether naturally occurring (keratin, collagen, DNA) or synthetic (nanotube assemblies, elastane). A key mechanical characteristic of these systems is their ability to reorganise in…
Reversible crosslinkers can enable several desirable mechanical properties, such as improved toughness and self-healing, when incorporated in polymer networks for bioengineering and structural applications. In this work, we performed…
The structure of the network can be described by motifs, which are subgraphs that often repeat themselves. In order to understand the structure of network motifs, it is of great importance to study subgraphs from the perspective of…
This study addresses the challenge of predicting network dynamics, such as forecasting disease spread in social networks or estimating species populations in predator-prey networks. Accurate predictions in large networks are difficult due…