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The assembly of molecular networks into structures such as random tilings and glasses has recently been demonstrated for a number of two-dimensional systems. These structures are dynamically-arrested on experimental timescales so the…
Diffusion of long ring polymers in a melt is much slower than the reorganization of their internal structures. While direct evidences for entanglements have not been observed in the long ring polymers unlike linear polymer melts, threading…
We employ small-angle X-ray and dynamic light scattering to investigate the microscopic structure and dynamics of dense suspensions of ultra-low crosslinked (ULC) poly(N-isopropylacrylamide) (PNIPAM) microgels. By probing the supercooled…
Colloidal magnetic particles embedded in an elastic polymer matrix constitute a smart material called ferrogel. It responds to an applied external magnetic field by changes in elastic properties, which can be exploited for various…
Subjected to compressive stresses, soft polymers with stiffness gradients can display various buckling patterns. These compressive stresses can have different origins, like mechanical forces, temperature changes, or, for hydrogel materials,…
Using molecular simulations and theory, we develop an explicit mapping of the contribution of molecular relaxation modes in glassy thermosets to the shear modulus, where the relaxations were tuned by altering the polarity of side groups.…
Topological constraints can affect both equilibrium and dynamic properties of polymer systems, and can play a role in the organization of chromosomes. Despite many theoretical studies, the effects of topological constraints on the…
Concentrated suspensions of small ultra-soft colloids (ultra-low crosslinked microgels) are investigated with scattering and steady shear rheology to capture their equilibrium dynamics. The suspensions lack dynamic arrest, although the slow…
Understanding how frustration and disorder shape relaxation in complex systems is a central problem in statistical physics and quantum annealing. Spin-glass models provide a natural framework to explore this connection, as their energy…
Active semiflexible filaments are crucial in various biophysical processes, yet insights into their single-filament behavior have predominantly relied on theory and simulations, owing to the scarcity of controllable synthetic systems. Here,…
I put forward a continuum theory for active nematic gels, defined as fluids or suspensions of orientable rodlike objects endowed with active dynamics, that is based on symmetry arguments and compatibility with thermodynamics. The starting…
We have simulated the motion of a bead subjected to a constant force while embedded in a network of semiflexible polymers which can represent actin filaments. We find that the bead displacement obeys the power law x ~ t^alfa. After the…
What can cells gain by using disordered, rather than folded, proteins in the architecture of their skeleton? Disordered proteins take multiple co-existing conformations, and often contain segments which act as random-walk-shaped polymers.…
We show that a viscoelastic thin sheet driven out of equilibrium by active structural remodelling develops a rich variety of shapes as a result of a competition between viscous relaxation and activity. In the regime where active processes…
Active polymers are driven out of equilibrium by internal forces and exhibit conformational properties that differ fundamentally from those of passive chains. Here we study how spatially modulated tangential activity reshapes the…
We present using simple scaling arguments and one step replica symmetry breaking a theory for the localization of semiflexible polymers in a quenched random environment. In contrast to completely flexible polymers, localization of…
The statistical mechanics of a long knotted collapsed polymer is determined by a free-energy with a knot-dependent subleading term, which is linked to the length of the shortest polymer that can hold such knot. The only other parameter…
Controlled quantum systems such as ultracold atoms can provide powerful platforms to study non-equilibrium dynamics of closed many-body quantum systems, especially since a complete theoretical description is generally challenging. In this…
Spontaneous formation of knots in long polymers at equilibrium is inevitable but becomes rare in sufficiently short chains. Here, we show that knotting and knot complexity increase by orders of magnitude in diblock polymers with a fraction…
We use Brownian dynamics (BD) simulations and single molecule experiments to investigate the influence of topological constraints and hydrodynamic interactions on the dynamics and rheology of solutions of ring-linear polymer blends at the…