Attenuated short wavelength buckling and force propagation in a biopolymer-reinforced rod
W.L. Shan, Z. Chen, C.P. Broedersz, A.A. Gumaste, W.O. Soboyejo, C.P. Brangwynne, Soft Matter, 9:194-199, 2013.
In this paper, we investigate short wavelength buckling of a thin elastic rod embedded in an elastic gelatin biopolymer network. Using a combination of micro-mechanical testing, microscopic imaging, as well as theory, we show that the buckling penetration depth can be tuned by varying the mechanical properties of the rod and the rod–gel interface.