

Author: Guo Qiaohang Chen Zi Li Wei Dai Pinqiang Ren Kun Lin Junjie Taber Larry A. Chen Wenzhe
Publisher: Edp Sciences
E-ISSN: 1286-4854|105|6|64005-64005
ISSN: 0295-5075
Source: EPL (EUROPHYSICS LETTERS), Vol.105, Iss.6, 2014-03, pp. : 64005-64005
Disclaimer: Any content in publications that violate the sovereignty, the constitution or regulations of the PRC is not accepted or approved by CNPIEC.
Abstract
Helical structures are ubiquitous in nature and engineering, ranging from DNA molecules to plant tendrils, from sea snail shells to nanoribbons. While the helical shapes in natural and engineered systems often exhibit nearly uniform radius and pitch, helical shell structures with changing radius and pitch, such as seashells and some plant tendrils, add to the variety of this family of aesthetic beauty. Here we develop a comprehensive theoretical framework for tunable helical morphologies, and report the first biomimetic seashell-like structure resulting from mechanics of geometric frustration. In previous studies, the total potential energy is everywhere minimized when the system achieves equilibrium. In this work, however, the local energy minimization cannot be realized because of the geometric incompatibility, and hence the whole system deforms into a shape with a global energy minimum whereby the energy in each segment may not necessarily be locally optimized. This novel approach can be applied to develop materials and devices of tunable geometries with a range of applications in nano/biotechnology.
Related content




Geometric frustration in CuV 2 S 4
By Chudo H. Nakamura H. Shiga M.
Solid State Communications, Vol. 129, Iss. 10, 2004-03 ,pp. :


Geometric Structure for Quantum Mechanics
By Bracken P.
International Journal of Theoretical Physics, Vol. 42, Iss. 4, 2003-04 ,pp. :

