2,240 research outputs found
Critical behaviour in the nonlinear elastic response of hydrogels
In this paper we study the elastic response of synthetic hydrogels to an
applied shear stress. The hydrogels studied here have previously been shown to
mimic the behaviour of biopolymer networks when they are sufficiently far above
the gel point. We show that near the gel point they exhibit an elastic response
that is consistent with the predicted critical behaviour of networks near or
below the isostatic point of marginal stability. This point separates rigid and
floppy states, distinguished by the presence or absence of finite linear
elastic moduli. Recent theoretical work has also focused on the response of
such networks to finite or large deformations, both near and below the
isostatic point. Despite this interest, experimental evidence for the existence
of criticality in such networks has been lacking. Using computer simulations,
we identify critical signatures in the mechanical response of sub-isostatic
networks as a function of applied shear stress. We also present experimental
evidence consistent with these predictions. Furthermore, our results show the
existence of two distinct critical regimes, one of which arises from the
nonlinear stretch response of semi-flexible polymers.
Normal stresses in semiflexible polymer hydrogels
Biopolymer gels such as fibrin and collagen networks are known to develop
tensile axial stress when subject to torsion. This negative normal stress is
opposite to the classical Poynting effect observed for most elastic solids
including synthetic polymer gels, where torsion provokes a positive normal
stress. As recently shown, this anomalous behavior in fibrin gels depends on
the open, porous network structure of biopolymer gels, which facilitates
interstitial fluid flow during shear and can be described by a phenomenological
two-fluid model with viscous coupling between network and solvent. Here we
extend this model and develop a microscopic model for the individual diagonal
components of the stress tensor that determine the axial response of
semi-flexible polymer hydrogels. This microscopic model predicts that the
magnitude of these stress components depends inversely on the characteristic
strain for the onset of nonlinear shear stress, which we confirm experimentally
by shear rheometry on fibrin gels. Moreover, our model predicts a transient
behavior of the normal stress, which is in excellent agreement with the full
time-dependent normal stress we measure.Comment: 12 pages, 8 figure
Indicators of implicit and explicit social anxiety influence threat-related interpretive bias as a function of working memory capacity
Interpretive biases play a crucial role in anxiety disorders. The aim of the current study was to examine factors that determine the relative strength of threat-related interpretive biases that are characteristic of individuals high in social anxiety. Different (dual process) models argue that both implicit and explicit processes determine information processing biases and behavior, and that their impact is moderated by the availability of executive resources such as working memory capacity (WMC). Based on these models, we expected indicators of implicit social anxiety to predict threat-related interpretive bias in individuals low, but not high in WMC. Indicators of explicit social anxiety should predict threat-related interpretive bias in individuals high, but not low in WMC. As expected, WMC moderated the impact of implicit social anxiety on threat-related interpretive bias, although the simple slope for individuals low in WMC was not statistically significant. The hypotheses regarding explicit social anxiety (with fear of negative evaluation used as an indicator) were fully supported. The clinical implications of these findings are discussed
Barrier and internal wave contributions to the quantum probability density and flux in light heavy-ion elastic scattering
We investigate the properties of the optical model wave function for light
heavy-ion systems where absorption is incomplete, such as Ca
and O around 30 MeV incident energy. Strong focusing effects
are predicted to occur well inside the nucleus, where the probability density
can reach values much higher than that of the incident wave. This focusing is
shown to be correlated with the presence at back angles of a strong enhancement
in the elastic cross section, the so-called ALAS (anomalous large angle
scattering) phenomenon; this is substantiated by calculations of the quantum
probability flux and of classical trajectories. To clarify this mechanism, we
decompose the scattering wave function and the associated probability flux into
their barrier and internal wave contributions within a fully quantal
calculation. Finally, a calculation of the divergence of the quantum flux shows
that when absorption is incomplete, the focal region gives a sizeable
contribution to nonelastic processes.Comment: 16 pages, 15 figures. RevTeX file. To appear in Phys. Rev. C. The
figures are only available via anonynous FTP on
ftp://umhsp02.umh.ac.be/pub/ftp_pnt/figscat
Spin 1 inversion: a Majorana tensor force for deuteron alpha scattering
We demonstrate, for the first time, successful S-matrix to potential
inversion for spin one projectiles with non-diagonal yielding a
interaction. The method is a generalization of the
iterative-perturbative, IP, method. We present a test case indicating the
degree of uniqueness of the potential. The method is adapted, using established
procedures, into direct observable to potential inversion, fitting ,
, , and for d + alpha scattering over
a range of energies near 10 MeV. The interaction which we find is
very different from that proposed elsewhere, both real and imaginary parts
being very different for odd and even parity channels.Comment: 7 pages Revtex, 4 ps figure
Writhing Photons and Berry Phases in Diffusive Wave Scattering
We study theoretically the polarization state of light in multiple scattering
media in the limit of weak gradients in refractive index. Linearly polarized
photons are randomly rotated due to the Berry phase associated with the
scattering path. For circularly polarized light independent speckle patterns
are found for the two helical states. The statistics of the geometric phase is
related to the writhe distribution of semiflexible polymers such as DNA.Comment: 4 pages, 1 figur
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