Spider silk mechanics

Humidity-driven supercontraction and twist in spider silk and its mechanical response

Spider silk is a protein material that exhibits extraordinary and nontrivial properties such as the ability to soften, decrease its length by up to ∼60%, and twist upon exposure to high humidity. These counter-intuitive behaviors are the result of a transition from a highly oriented glassy phase to a disoriented rubbery phase. Our new work presents a model that explains the origins of this phenomena. The insights from this work motivate the development of novel biomimetic materials.

Check out our work here:

Deformation and failure mechanisms in spider silk fibers

The underlying mechanisms behind the hydration-induced and mechanical response of spider silk

On the origin of supercontraction in spider silk

Humidity-driven supercontraction and twist in spider silk

Biological polymer networks that experience significant softening under hydration

The fabrication of synthetic materials with unique properties is often inspired by observations from nature.

Recent experimental evidence showed that the elastic protein network resilin, which is commonly found in insects, is capable of experiencing a significant softening of several orders of magnitude upon water uptake.  We recall that the stiffness of “classical” polymers, such as rubber, modestly decreases as swelling occurs.

What are the mechanisms behind the swelling-induced response of the bio-polymer network resilin? We answered that question in our new work.