Dresden 2011 – scientific programme

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MM: Fachverband Metall- und Materialphysik

MM 7: Computational Materials Modelling II

MM 7.4: Talk

Monday, March 14, 2011, 15:15–15:30, IFW B

Understanding Macroscopic Fiber Systems with Statistical Mechanics Concepts — •Nava Schulmann — Institut Charles Sadron, Strasbourg, France

Many natural systems such as cellulose fibers, hair, DNA, or manufactured materials like ropes or wires are made from fibers. The mechanical and statistical mechanic behavior of individual fibers is now well understood and can be described by the physical concepts of torsion, extension and curvature rigidities, and by the topological concepts of twist and writhe. The properties of matter made by many interacting microscopic fibers have also been investigated to some extent, particularly in the limit where fiber rigidity is small enough for thermal forces to play a predominant role. Macroscopic or more rigid systems, where temperature plays a negligible role are much less understood. We have studied fiber stacks [Europhys. Let., 2003, 64, 647], and shown that statistical physics concepts from the thermal systems can be used to understand many properties of the macroscopic systems. In particular, we have shown that the frozen curvature heterogeneities give rise to an effective temperature that controls material properties such as stack compressibility or assembly shape. The aim of this project is to confront the mean-field theoretical predictions for nearly-aligned fiber stacks with numerical simulations. In particular, we want to understand the accuracy of the effective temperature analogy and the limits of the mean-field approximation.