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Neither of the two prevalent theories, namely thermodynamic stability and kinetic stability, provides a comprehensive understanding of protein folding. The thermodynamic theory is misleading because it assumes that free energy is the…
The structural stability of a lightsail under the laser flux necessary for interstellar flight is studied analytically and numerically. A sinusoidal perturbation is introduced into a two-dimensional thin-film sail to determine if the sail…
A set of simulations concerning the influence of internal energy on the stability of relativistic jets is presented. Results show that perturbations saturate when the amplitude of the velocity perturbation approaches the speed of light…
A thin flat rectangular plate supported on its edges and subjected to in-plane loading exhibits stable post-buckling behaviour. However, the introduction of a nonlinear (softening) elastic foundation may cause the response to become…
We investigate the behaviour of a flexible stem completely submerged under a surface gravity wave of finite amplitude using fully resolved direct numerical simulations. By varying the rigidity of the stem over ten orders of magnitude, we…
Friction is fundamental to mechanical stability across scales, from geological faults and architectural structures to granular materials and animal feet. We study the mechanical stability of a minimal friction-stabilized structure composed…
We measure stability of two-dimensional granular mixtures in a rotating drum and relate grain configurations to stability. For our system, the smaller but smoother grains cluster near the center of the drum, while the larger, rougher grains…
The universal anomalous vibrational and thermal properties of amorphous solids are believed to be related to the local variations of the elasticity. Recently it has been shown that the vibrational properties are sensitive to the glass's…
We construct and simulate the dynamics of gauged vortons - circular loops of cosmic string supported by the angular momentum of trapped charge and current and provide additional details on the fully stable vorton that we have previously…
We study analytically and numerically the stability of the pressure-less, viscously spreading accretion ring. We show that the ring is unstable to small non-axisymmetric perturbations. To perform the perturbation analysis of the ring we use…
This paper presents the stability analysis of a system sliding at low velocities ($< 100 \mu$m.s$^{-1}$) under a periodically modulated normal load, preserving interfacial contact. Experiments clearly evidence that normal vibrations…
This paper investigates the stability of distance-based \textit{flexible} undirected formations in the plane. Without rigidity, there exists a set of connected shapes for given distance constraints, which is called the ambit. We show that a…
The stability and transition in the bottom boundary layer under a solitary wave are analysed in the presence of finite amplitude disturbances. First, the receptivity of the boundary layer is investigated using a linear input-output…
The surface dynamics and thermodynamics of metal nanowires are investigated in a continuum model. Competition between surface tension and electron-shell effects leads to a rich stability diagram, with fingers of stability extending to…
Insects use flight muscles attached at the base of the wings to produce impressive wing flapping frequencies. The maximum power output of these flight muscles is insufficient to maintain such wing oscillations unless there is good elastic…
This thesis presents a newly developed theory for the formation and maintenance of eddy-driven jets in planetary turbulence. The novelty is that jet formation and maintenance is studied as a dynamics of the statistics of the flow rather…
Insects, pick-and-place manufacturing, engineered adhesives, and soft robots employ soft materials to stick to surfaces even in the presence of roughness. Experiments show that the force required for making contact is lower than for…
Growing soft materials which follow a 3D path in space are critical to applications such as search and rescue and minimally invasive surgery. Here, we present a concept for a single-input growing multi-stable soft material, based on a…
The $\beta$-relaxation associated with the sub-glass transition temperature ($T_{\text{g},\beta}$) is attributed to fast, localised molecular motions which can occur below the primary glass transition temperature ($T_{g\alpha}$). Despite…
We incorporate the role of free volume in the density function of the amorphous structure and study its effects on the stability of such structures. The Density Functional Theory is used to explore this ``Free Volume Model'' of the…