Microgels are colloidal polymer networks with high molar mass and properties between rigid
particles, flexible macromolecules, and micellar aggregates. Their unique stimuli …

Polymer mechanochemistry uses mechanical forces to break and manipulate chemical
bonds, driving a functional response in the material of choice, thus making it an ideal …

Unfilled elastomers often suffer from poor fracture resistance at high temperature where
viscoelastic dissipation is low. A molecular design based on multiple interpenetrating …

To design increasingly tough, resilient, and fatigue-resistant elastomers and hydrogels, the
relationship between controllable network parameters at the molecular level (bond type, non …

Tough hydrogels with unconventional polymer network architectures often show superior
mechanical properties because of the microstructures at the polymer chain and network …

Understanding bond rupture in polymer networks remains a fundamental challenge due to
the interplay of network topology and condensed phase effects. In this work, we introduce a …

While early multicellular lineages necessarily started out as relatively simple groups of cells,
little is known about how they became Darwinian entities capable of sustained multicellular …

The elasticity of disordered and polydisperse polymer networks is a fundamental problem of
soft matter physics that is still open. Here, we self-assemble polymer networks via …

Understanding the resistance of soft materials to puncture bears relevance to many fields.
However, the complex mechanics during deep indentation make it difficult to disentangle …

Soft network materials exist in numerous forms ranging from polymer networks, such as
elastomers, to fiber networks, such as collagen. In addition, in colloidal gels, an underlying …