Related papers: Writhing Dynamics of Cables with Self-contact
We study self-contact phenomena in elastic rods that are constrained to lie on a cylinder. By choosing a particular set of variables to describe the rod centerline the variational setting is made particularly simple: the strain energy is a…
Dynamics of flexible non-Brownian fibers in shear flow at low-Reynolds-number are analyzed numerically for a wide range of the ratios A of the fiber bending force to the viscous drag force. Initially, the fibers are aligned with the flow,…
Tangles of string typically become knotted, from macroscopic twine down to long-chain macromolecules such as DNA. Here we demonstrate that knotting also occurs in quantum wavefunctions, where the tangled filaments are vortices (nodal…
Self-organized branching structures can emerge spontaneously as interfacial instabilities in both simple and complex fluids, driven by the interplay between bulk material rheology, boundary constraints, and interfacial forcing. In our…
The shape transformations of fluid membranes induced by curved protein rods are studied using meshless membrane simulations. The rod assembly at low rod density induces a flat membrane tube and oblate vesicle. It is found that the…
Ribbons are a class of slender structures whose length, width, and thickness are widely separated from each other. This scale separation gives a ribbon unusual mechanical properties in athermal macroscopic settings, e.g. it can bend without…
Undulatory slender objects have been a central theme in the hydrodynamics of swimming at low Reynolds number, where the slender body is usually assumed to be inextensible, although some microorganisms and artificial microrobots largely…
Functional structures from across the engineered and biological world combine rigid elements such as bones and columns with flexible ones such as cables, fibers and membranes. These structures are known loosely as tensegrities, since these…
We solve several problems that involve imposing metrics on surfaces. The problem of a strip with a linear metric gradient is formulated in terms of a Lagrangean similar to those used for spin systems. We are able to show that the low energy…
We introduce a continuum model for a fibre reinforced material in which the reference orientation of the fibre may evolve with time, under the influence of external stimuli. The model is formulated in the framework of large strain…
The surface of a liquid near a moving contact line is highly curved owing to diverging viscous forces. Thus, microscopic physics must be invoked at the contact line and matched to the hydrodynamic solution farther away. This matching has…
We study what is clearly one of the most common modes of deformation found in nature, science and engineering, namely the large elastic bending of curved structures, as well as its inverse, unbending, which can be brought beyond complete…
Microorganisms often encounter strong confinement and complex hydrodynamic flows while navigating their habitats. Combining finite-element methods and stochastic simulations, we study the interplay of active transport and heterogeneous…
Viewed under a fluorescence microscope, the actomyosin cytoskeleton presents vivid streaks of lines together with persistent oscillatory waves. Using an active hydrodynamic approach, we show how a uniform distribution of single or mixture…
Fiberboids are active filaments trapped at the interface of two phases, able of harnessing energy (and matter) fluxes across the interface in order to produce a rolling-like self-propulsion. We discuss several table-top examples and develop…
A three-dimensional round liquid jet within a low-speed coaxial gas flow is numerically simulated and explained via vortex dynamics ($\lambda_2$ method). The instabilities on the liquid-gas interface reflect well the vortex interactions…
The dynamics of receding contact lines is investigated experimentally through controlled perturbations of a meniscus in a dip coating experiment. We first characterize stationary menisci and their breakdown at the coating transition. It is…
Liquid drops on soft solids generate strong deformations below the contact line, resulting from a balance of capillary and elastic forces. The movement of these drops may cause strong, potentially singular dissipation in the soft solid.…
The complex behavior of drop deposition on a hydrophobic surface is considered by looking at a model problem in which the evolution of a constant-volume liquid bridge is studied as the bridge is stretched. The bridge is pinned with a fixed…
We study the nonlinear evolution of the magnetic Rayleigh-Taylor instability using three-dimensional MHD simulations. We consider the idealized case of two inviscid, perfectly conducting fluids of constant density separated by a contact…