Hydrogels are biomimetic materials widely used in the area of biomedical engineering and biosensing. Ferrogels (FG) are magnetic composites capable of functioning as magnetic field sensitive transformers and field assisted drug deliverers. FG can be prepared by incorporating magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) into chemically crosslinked hydrogels. The properties of biomimetic ferrogels for multifunc...

We have developed a new technique to measure viscoelasticity in soft materials such as polymer solutions, by monitoring thermal fluctuations of embedded probe particles using laser interferometry in a microscope. Interferometry allows us to obtain power spectra of fluctuating beads from 0.1 Hz to 20 kHz, and with subnanometer spatial resolution. Using linear response theory, we determined the f...

Recent advances in contact mechanics have formalized approaches to distinguish between poroelastic and viscoelastic deformation regimes via load relaxation experiments, and to simultaneously extract the mechanical and transport properties of gels at the macroscale. As poroelastic relaxation times scale quadratically with contact diameter, contact radii and depths on the mm scale can require hou...

Activation of macrophages is critical in the acute phase of wound healing after implantation of surgical biomaterials. To understand the response of macrophages, they are often cultured in vitro on biomaterials. Since a wide range of biomaterials is currently used in the clinics, we undertook a systematic review of the macrophage polarization in response to these different surgical biomaterials...

Although hydrogels now see widespread use in a host of applications, low fracture toughness and brittleness have limited their more broad use. As a recently described interpenetrating network (IPN) of alginate and polyacrylamide demonstrated a fracture toughness of ≈ 9000 J/m(2), we sought to explore the biocompatibility and maintenance of mechanical properties of these hydrogels in cell cultur...

Vapor deposited functional polymer thin films can undergo rapid covalent functionalization. Patterning of two functional layers displaying orthogonal reactivity enables sorting of aqueous mixtures of dyes and nanoparticles, such as quantum dots, onto selective areas of nanopatterned surfaces. Introduction Surfaces covered by well-defined organic functional groups can serve as platforms to immob...

Conductive hydrogels based on two-dimensional (2D) nanomaterials, MXene, have emerged as promising materials for flexible wearable sensors. In these applications, the integration of high toughness, ultrastretchability, low hysteresis, self-adhesiveness, and multiple sensory functions into one gel is essential. However, serious issues, such easy restacking inevitable oxidation MXene nanosheets i...

Robotic rehabilitation is a solution for recovery from neuromuscular diseases and supports physical therapists in performing high-intensity repetitive training activities. The main reason the limitations of robot utilization economic factors because technology requires high levels investment relatively costly routine operation maintenance. To facilitate widespread adoption robots, low-cost, hig...

Statement of Purpose: Complex structural organization in the human body is a key factor to produce the appropriate tissue functionality. In mature skeletal muscle, the muscle fibers are highly oriented and the bundle structure is essential to produce its mechanical functions. Therefore, a technique for organizing the microstructure of native muscle tissue is required to produce a biomimetic eng...