Effects of fiber spatial distribution and relative orientation on the percolation and mechanics of stochastic fiber networks: A model of peptide hydrogels.

Abstract

The structures of fiber networks can vary greatly due to fiber interactions during formation. We have modified the steps of generating Mikado networks to create two model classes by altering the spatial distribution and relative orientation of their fibers to mimic the structures of self-assembling peptide hydrogels (SAPHs), whose physical properties depend strongly on their fibers' interactions. The results of our models and experiments on a set of beta-sheet forming SAPHs show that modifying a network's structure affects the percolation threshold and the mechanical behavior of the material, both near percolation and at higher densities.