Related papers: Nature's forms are frilly, flexible, and functiona…

A characteristic feature of the Earth is that diffuse thermal convection in the mantle produces localized deformation at the surface: Plate Tectonics. However, modelling this phenomenon remains a challenge, due to inability to simulate…

The buckling of elastic bodies is a common phenomenon in the mechanics of solids. Wrinkling of membranes can often be interpreted as buckling under constraints that prohibit large amplitude deformation. We present a combination of analytic…

We demonstrate spontaneous wrinkling as a transient dynamical pattern in thin freely floating smectic liquid-crystalline films. The peculiarity of such films is that, while flowing liquid-like in the film plane, they cannot quickly expand…

Modeling the spontaneous evolution of morphology in natural systems and its preservation by proportionate growth remains a major scientific challenge. Yet, it is conceivable that if the basic mechanisms of growth and the coupled kinetic…

We study T-branes on compact Kaehler surfaces, in the presence of fields localised at curves. If such fields are treated as defects, their vevs induce delta-function sources for the 7-brane background, possibly leading to profiles with…

Thin elastic sheets appear in systems ranging from graphene to biological membranes, where phenomena such as wrinkling, folding, and thermal fluctuations originate from geometric nonlinearities. These effects are treated within weakly…

We introduce the Plaque Topology on the inverse limit of a branched covering self-map of a Riemann surface of a finite degree greater than one. We present the notions of regular and irregular points in the setting of this Plaque Inverse…

Many organisms exhibit branching morphologies that twist around each other and become entangled. Entanglement occurs when different objects interlock, creating complex and often irreversible configurations. This physical phenomenon is…

Recent experiments by Kantsler et. al. (2007) have shown that the relaxational dynamics of a vesicle in external elongation flow is accompanied by the formation of wrinkles on a membrane. Motivated by these experiments we present a theory…

We develop the theory of the coupling between in-plane order and out-of-plane geometry in twisted, two-dimensionally ordered filament bundles based on the non-linear continuum elasticity theory of columnar materials. We show that twisted…

Epithelial monolayers are a central building block of complex organisms. Topological defects have emerged as important elements for single cell behavior in flat epithelia. Here we theoretically study such defects in a three-dimensional…

Hydrodynamics is shown to induce non-Hermitian topological phenomena in ordinary, passive soft matter. This is demonstrated for the first time by subjecting a 2D elastic lattice to a low-Reynolds viscous flow. The interplay of hydrodynamics…

A collection of thin structures buckle, bend, and bump into each-other when confined. This contact can lead to the formation of patterns: hair will self-organize in curls; DNA strands will layer into cell nuclei; paper, when crumpled, will…

We investigate how thin structures change their shape in response to non-mechanical stimuli that can be interpreted as variations in the structure's natural curvature. Starting from the theory of non-Euclidean plates and shells, we derive…

Buckling instabilities driven by tissue growth underpin key developmental events such as the folding of the brain. Tissue growth is disordered due to cell-to-cell variability, but the effects of this variability on buckling are unknown.…

In pulsating active matter, topological defects are motile despite the absence of any macroscopic flows and microscopic self-propulsion. We reveal that this motility arises from a ratchet effect: the mechanochemical coupling between local…

In complex crystals close to melting or at finite temperatures, different types of defects are ubiquitous and their role becomes relevant in the mechanical response of these solids. Conventional elasticity theory fails to provide a…

Thin elastic sheets bend easily, leading to mechanical instabilities such as wrinkling. Here, we investigate wrinkles at edges of bi-strips, which consist of two thin sheets, one that swells and one that does not, joined side-by-side. It is…

We investigate the out-of-plane shape morphing capability of single-material elastic sheets with architected cut patterns that result in arrays of tiles connected by flexible hinges. We demonstrate that a non-periodic cut pattern can cause…

Wetting of liquid droplets on passive surfaces is ubiquitous in our daily lives, and the governing physical laws are well-understood. When surfaces become active, however, the governing laws of wetting remain elusive. Here we propose…