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The Geometry of Crumpled Paper

Daniel L. Blair·Arshad Kudrolli
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Abstract

We measure the geometry of a crumpled sheet of paper with laser-aided topography and discuss its statistical properties. The curvature of an elasto-plastic fold scales linearly with applied force. The curvature distribution follows an exponential form with regions of high curvature localized along ridges. The measured ridge length distribution is consistent with a hierarchical model for ridge breaking during crumpling. A large fraction of the ridges are observed to terminate without bifurcating and the ridge network connectedness is not as complete as anticipated. The self-affinity of the surface is characterized by a Hurst exponent of $0.72\pm 0.01$ in contrast with previous results.

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Daniel L. Blair, Arshad Kudrolli. 2004-12-27. The Geometry of Crumpled Paper. https://doi.org/10.1103/physrevlett.94.166107

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