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Updated: Aug 16, 2026

Fabrication Process of Silicone-based Dielectric Elastomer Actuators
Published on: February 1, 2016
Solenoids and plectonemes in stretched and twisted elastomeric filaments
1Division of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Harvard University, Cambridge, 02138 Massachusetts, USA. aghatak@iitk.ac.in
Abstract:
We study the behavior of a naturally straight highly extensible elastic filament subjected to large extensional and twisting strains. We find that two different phases can coexist for a range of parameter values: the plectoneme and the solenoid. A simple theory based on a neo-Hookean model for the material of the filament and accounting for the slender geometry suffices to explain these observations, and leads to a phase diagram that is consistent with observations. Extension and relaxation experiments on these phases show the presence of large hysteresis loops and sawtooth-like force-displacement curves which are different for the plectoneme and the solenoid.
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