Designing mechanomutable composites: reconfiguring the structure of nanoparticle networks through mechanical deformation.

Hamer, Matthew J; Iyer, Balaji V S; Yashin, Victor V; Balazs, Anna C · Nano Lett · 2014

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

Via a new dynamic, three-dimensional computer model, we simulate the tensile deformation of polymer-grafted nanoparticles that are cross-linked by labile bonds, which can readily rupture and reform. For a range of relatively high strains, the network does not fail, but rather restructures into a stable, ordered structure. Within this network, the reshuffling of the labile bonds enables the formation of this new morphology. The results provide guidelines for designing mechano-responsive hybrid materials that undergo controllable structural transitions through the application of applied forces.