Mechanical properties of silk: interplay of deformation on macroscopic and molecular length scales

Phys Rev Lett. 2008 Feb 1;100(4):048104. doi: 10.1103/PhysRevLett.100.048104. Epub 2008 Jan 31.

Abstract

Using an in situ combination of tensile tests and x-ray diffraction, we have determined the mechanical properties of both the crystalline and the disordered phase of the biological nanocomposite silk by adapting a model from linear viscoelastic theory to the semicrystalline morphology of silk. We observe a strong interplay between morphology and mechanical properties. Silk's high extensibility results principally from the disordered phase; however, the crystals are also elastically deformed.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Bombyx
  • Elasticity
  • Fibroins / chemistry
  • Silk / chemistry*
  • Stress, Mechanical
  • Tensile Strength
  • Viscosity

Substances

  • Silk
  • Fibroins