Determining Forces in Macroscopic Fiber Networks Using Conductive Fabric
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Excerpt of abstract: Fiber networks are present in various systems from textiles and paper to the cytoskeleton and tissues. Simulations of fiber networks have unveiled interesting emergent phenomena. However, it has proven difficult to experimentally probe how forces are distributed across individual fibers in such networks. Here we are able to determine the force distribution through multiple geometries of macroscopic networks in both two and three dimensions in a simple manner. We construct networks out of macroscopic strips of conductive fabric. We measure the change in resistivity of each element of conductive fabric as a network is perturbed to determine the force on each element simultaneously. We investigate the magnitudes of the forces within the network and how those forces are spatially distributed through the network. Our model system makes determining the stress throughout a large system quite simple, and can be applied to large and three-dimensional systems.