Related papers: Rethinking failure in polymer networks: a probabil…
We present an analytical theory for heteropolymer deformation, as exemplified experimentally by stretching of single protein molecules. Using a mean-field replica theory, we determine phase diagrams for stress-induced unfolding of typical…
We consider the thermally activated fragmentation of a homopolymer chain. In our simple model the dynamics of the intact chain is a Rouse one until a bond breaks and bond breakdown is considered as a first passage problem over a barrier to…
We study the dependence of the fracture surface energy on the pulling velocity for nano-porous polypropylene (PP) sheets to find two components: the static and dynamic ones. We show that these terms can be interpreted respectively as…
Phase separation within polymer networks plays a central role in shaping the structure and mechanics of both synthetic materials and living cells, including the formation of biomolecular condensates within cytoskeletal networks. Previous…
We study the micromechanics of collagen-I gel with the goal of bridging the gap between theory and experiment in the study of biopolymer networks. Three-dimensional images of fluorescently labeled collagen are obtained by confocal…
We present an extensive experimental study of mode-I, steady, slow crack dynamics in gelatin gels. Taking advantage of the sensitivity of the elastic stiffness to gel composition and history we confirm and extend the model for fracture of…
Single-molecule mechanical manipulation has enabled the quantitative understanding of the kinetics of bond ruptures as well as protein unfolding mechanism. Single-molecule experiments with theoretical models have allowed one to gain insight…
We use molecular dynamics simulations to investigate the microscopic and macroscopic response of model polymer networks to uniaxial elongations. By studying networks with strands lengths ranging from $N_s=20$ to 200 we cover the full…
Networks of interconnected materials permeate throughout nature, biology, and technology due to exceptional mechanical performance. Despite the importance of failure resistance in network design and utility, no existing physical model…
The forced rupture of single chemical bonds under external load is addressed. A general framework is put forward to optimally utilize the experimentally observed rupture force data for estimating the parameters of a theoretical model. As an…
Although the stretching of polymers and biomolecules is important in numerous settings, their response when confined to two-dimensions is relatively poorly-studied. In this paper, we derive closed-form analytical expressions for the…
Local chain structure and local environment play an important role in the dynamics of polymer chains in miscible blends. In general, the friction coefficients that describe the segmental dynamics of the two components in a blend differ from…
The structure of polymer networks, defined by chain lengths and connectivity patterns, fundamentally influences their bulk properties. While existing polymer network models connect chain properties to emergent network behavior, they are…
We introduce a simple geometric model for a double-stranded and double-helical polymer. We study the statistical mechanics of such polymers using both analytical techniques and simulation. Our model has a single energy-scale which…
Random fiber networks form the structural foundation of numerous biological tissues and engineered materials. From a mechanics perspective, understanding the structure-function relationships of random fiber networks is particularly…
Molecular dynamics simulations are used to investigate the conformations of a single polymer chain, represented by the Kremer-Grest bead-spring model, in a solution with a Lennard-Jones liquid as the solvent when the interaction strength…
We introduce a model of fracture which includes the out-of-plane degrees of freedom necessary to describe buckling in a thin-sheet material. The model is a regular square lattice of elastic beams, rigidly connected at the nodes so as to…
We study the mechanical and conformational properties of networks of helical polymers with a combination of Monte Carlo simulations based on the Wang-Landau algorithm and the Three-chain Model. We find that the stress-strain behavior of…
Composites with high strength and high fracture resistance are desirable for structural and protective applications. Most composites, however, suffer from poor damage tolerance and are prone to unpredictable fractures. Understanding the…
Linear Elastic Fracture Mechanics (LEFM) provides a consistent framework to evaluate quantitatively the energy flux released to the tip of a growing crack. Still, the way in which the crack selects its velocity in response to this energy…