arXiv subjects

Klaus Kroy

Publications and source records attributed to Klaus Kroy.

61 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

arXiv2002

Minimal model for aeolian sand dunes

We present a minimal model for the formation and migration of aeolian sand dunes. It combines a perturbative description of the turbulent wind velocity field above the dune with a continuum saltation model that allows for saturation transients in the sand flux. The latter are shown to provide the characteristic length scale. The model can explain the origin of important features of dunes, such as the formation of a slip face, the broken scale invariance, and the existence of a minimum dune size. It also predicts the longitudinal shape and aspect ratio of dunes and heaps, their migration velocity and shape relaxation dynamics. Although the minimal model employs non-local expressions for the wind shear stress as well as for the sand flux, it is simple enough to serve as a very efficient tool for analytical and numerical investigations and to open up the way to simulations of large scale desert topographies.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv2002

Minimal Model for Sand Dunes

We propose a minimal model for aeolian sand dunes. It combines an analytical description of the turbulent wind velocity field above the dune with a continuum saltation model that allows for saturation transients in the sand flux. The model provides a qualitative understanding of important features of real dunes, such as their longitudinal shape and aspect ratio, the formation of a slip face, the breaking of scale invariance, and the existence of a minimum dune size.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv1999

On the Viscosity of Emulsions

Combining direct computations with invariance arguments, Taylor's constitutive equation for an emulsion can be extrapolated to high shear rates. We show that the resulting expression is consistent with the rigorous limits of small drop deformation and that it bears a strong similarity to an a priori unrelated rheological quantity, namely the dynamic (frequency dependent) linear shear response. More precisely, within a large parameter region the nonlinear steady-state shear viscosity is obtained from the real part of the complex dynamic viscosity, while the first normal stress difference is obtained from its imaginary part. Our experiments with a droplet phase of a binary polymer solution (alginate/caseinate) can be interpreted by an emulsion analogy. They indicate that the predicted similarity rule generalizes to the case of moderately viscoelastic constituents that obey the Cox-Merz rule.

physics.flu-dyn↗

arXiv1998

Statistical Mechanics of Semiflexible Polymers: Theory and Experiment

We review the physical properties of macromolecular networks, consisting of semiflexible polymers such as actin. We start by giving a theoretical analysis of the conformational statistics and mechanical response of single filaments. Experimentally relevant quantities such as the end-to-end distribution function and the force-extension relation are discussed. The results are used to analyze the elastic modulus of an entangled solution of such objects. We also discuss the short time and long time (terminal regime) dynamics and compare our results with recent dynamic light scattering and viscoelastic measurements. Furthermore, we analyze the elasticity transition in stochastic models of crosslinked networks.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv1998

Physics of Solutions and Networks of Semiflexible Macromolecules and the Control of Cell Function

Living cells are soft bodies of a characteristic form, but endowed with a capacity for a steady turnover of their structures. Both of these material properties, i.e. recovery of the shape after an external stress has been imposed and dynamic structural reorganization, are essential for many cellular phenomena. Examples are mechanical properties of tissue, cell motility, cell growth and division, and active intracellular transport. Numerous experiments in vivo and in vitro have shown that the structural element responsible for the extraordinary mechanical and dynamical properties of eukaryotic cells is the cytoskeleton, a three-dimensional assembly of protein fibers such as actin filaments and microtubules. In addition to those biopolymers various proteins with structural and regulatory functions have a major influence on the mechanical properties. At the relevant length-scales (a few microns at most) the building blocks of these biomaterials are very different from conventional polymeric material. In contrast to flexible polymers the persistence length is of the same order of magnitude as their total contour length or even larger. This implies that the physics of such a system is determined by a subtle interplay between energetic and entropic contributions. We review our present understanding of the physics of biopolymers using concepts from macromolecular and statistical physics complemented by computer simulation. These systems open up a new field of soft condensed matter research, which to date is only poorly understood but has a great potential for interesting new physical phenomena.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv1997

Dynamic Scattering from Solutions of Semiflexible Polymers

The dynamic structure factor of semiflexible polymers in solution is derived from the wormlike chain model. Special attention is paid to the rigid constraint of an inextensible contour and to the hydrodynamic interactions. For the cases of dilute and semidilute solutions exact expressions for the initial slope are obtained. When the hydrodynamic interaction is treated on the level of a renormalized friction coefficient, the decay of the structure factor due to the structural relaxation obeys a stretched exponential law in agreement with experiments on actin. We show how the characteristic parameters of the system (the persistence length \ell_p, the lateral diameter a of the molecules and the mesh size ξ_m of the network) are readily determined by a single scattering experiment with scattering wavelength λobeying a << λ<<\ell_p and λ<ξ_m. We also find an exact explicit expression for the effective (wave vector dependent) dynamic exponent z(k)<3 for semiflexible polymers and thus an enlightening explanation for a longstanding puzzle in polymer physics.

cond-mat.soft↗

arXiv1996

Force-Extension Relation and Plateau Modulus for Wormlike Chains

We derive the linear force-extension relation for a wormlike chain of arbitrary stiffness including entropy elasticity, bending and thermodynamic buckling. From this we infer the plateau modulus $G^0$ of an isotropic entangled solution of wormlike chains. The entanglement length $L_e$ is expressed in terms of the characteristic network parameters for three different scaling regimes in the entangled phase. The entanglement transition and the concentration dependence of $G^0$ are analyzed. Finally we compare our findings with experimental data.

cond-mat↗