Related papers: Nonlinear dynamic intertwining of rods with self-c…
The transport of macromolecules, such as DNA, through the cytoskeleton is critical to wide-ranging cellular processes from cytoplasmic streaming to transcription. The rigidity and steric hindrances imparted by the network of filaments…
We investigate the dynamics of two-dimensional assemblies of rod-shaped magnetic colloids under the influence of an external rotating magnetic field. Using Molecular Dynamics, we simulate the formation of patterns that emerge based on the…
Random packings of stiff rods are self-supporting mechanical structures stabilized by long range interactions induced by contacts. To understand the geometrical and topological complexity of the packings, we first deploy X-ray computerized…
By combining analytical theory and Molecular Dynamics simulations we study the relaxation dynamics of DNA circular plasmids that initially undergo a local twist perturbation. We identify three distinctive time scales; (I) a rapid relaxation…
The observation of novel physical phenomena such as Hofstadter's butterfly, topological currents and unconventional superconductivity in graphene have been enabled by the replacement of SiO$_2$ with hexagonal Boron Nitride (hBN) as a…
Magnetic reconnection, the rearrangement of magnetic field topology, is a fundamental physical process in magnetized plasma systems all over the universe1,2. Its process is difficult to be directly observed. Coronal structures, such as…
We propose a dynamical model depicting the interactions between DNA and a specific binding protein involving long range transmissions. The dynamics rely on the coupling between Hydrogen bonds formed between DNA and protein and between the…
DNA-spools, structures in which DNA is wrapped and helically coiled onto itself or onto a protein core are ubiquitous in nature. We develop a general theory describing the non-equilibrium behavior of DNA-spools under linear tension. Two…
Polymer composites are ubiquitous in biology and industry alike, owing to their emergent desirable mechanical properties not attainable in single-species systems. At the same time, polymer topology has been shown to play a key role in…
We use the worm-like chain model to study supercoiling of DNA under tension and torque. The model reproduces experimental data for a much broader range of forces, salt concentrations and contour lengths than previous approaches. Our theory…
We develop a continuum elastic approach to examining the bending mechanics of semiflexible filaments with a local internal degree of freedom that couples to the bending modulus. We apply this model to study the nonlinear mechanics of a…
We study the collective dynamics of self-propelled rods in an inhomogeneous motility field. At the interface between two regions of constant but different motility, a smectic rod layer is spontaneously created through aligning interactions…
Ring polymers exhibit unique flow properties due to their closed chain topology. Despite recent progress, we have not yet achieved a full understanding of the nonequilibrium flow behavior of rings in nondilute solutions where intermolecular…
One of the most challenging and basic problems in elastic rod dynamics is a description of rods in contact that prevents any unphysical self-intersections. Most previous works addressed this issue through the introduction of short-range…
Rogue waves are known to be much more common on jet currents. A possible explanation was put forward in [ [V. Shrira and A. Slunyaev, Nonlinear dynamics of trapped waves on jet currents and rogue waves, Phys. Rev. E 89, 041002, 2014]]: for…
The ordering of rod-like particles in soft, deformable containers emerges from the interplay of anisotropic interactions, geometric confinement, and boundary compliance. This competition couples internal particle organization to container…
We present experiments on the dynamic buckling and fragmentation of slender rods axially impacted by a projectile. By combining the results of Saint-Venant and elastic beam theory, we derive a preferred wavelength lambda for the buckling…
We study the nucleation and development of crack patterns in thin composite fibers under tension in this work. A fiber comprises an elastic core and an outer layer of a weaker brittle material. In recent tensile experiments on such…
It has recently been realised that strings with time-dependent tensions exhibit interesting dynamics; in particular, when the tension decreases loops of string can grow and possibly percolate. We extend previous analytic studies of strings…
Tangled active filaments are ubiquitous in nature, from chromosomal DNA and cilia carpets to root networks and worm blobs. How activity and elasticity facilitate collective topological transformations in living tangled matter is not well…