title: Tension-induced straightening transition of self-assembled helical ribbons.
abstract: Helical ribbons with pitch angles of either 11 degrees or 54 degrees self-assemble in a wide variety of quaternary surfactant-phospholipid/fatty acid-sterol-water systems. By elastically deforming these helices, we examined their response to uniaxial forces. Under sufficient tension, a low pitch helix reversibly separates into a straight domain with a pitch angle of 90 degrees and a helical domain with a pitch angle of 16.5 degrees. Using a newly developed continuum elastic free energy model, we have shown that this phenomenon can be understood as a first order mechanical phase transition.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics, Center for Materials Science and Engineering and Materials Processing Center, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139-4307, USA.
authors.forename: B
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Smith
authors.forename: Y V
authors.initials: YV
authors.lastname: Zastavker
authors.forename: G B
authors.initials: GB
authors.lastname: Benedek
mesh_terms: D004247:DNA / Q000737:chemistry; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000737:chemistry; D008962:Models, Theoretical; D008968:Molecular Conformation; D010743:Phospholipids / Q000737:chemistry; D013261:Sterols / Q000737:chemistry; D014867:Water / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D005227:Fatty Acids; D010743:Phospholipids; D013261:Sterols; D014867:Water; D004247:DNA