Four acrylate-based networks were developed such that they possessed similar glass transition temperature (~− 37 °C) but varied in material stiffness at room temperature by an order of magnitude (2–12 MPa). Thermo-mechanical and adhesion testing were performed to investigate the effect of elastic modulus on adhesion profiles of the developed samples. Adhesion experiments with a spherical probe revealed no dependency of the pull-off force on material modulus as predicted by the Johnson, Kendall, and Roberts theory. Results obtained using a flat probe showed that the pull-off force increases linearly with an increase in the material modulus, which matches very well with Kendall's theory.

The fabrication of bimetallic magnetic nanoparticles (NPs) smaller than the size of single magnetic domain is very challenging because of the agglomeration, non-uniform size, and possible complex chemistry at nanoscale. In this paper, we present an alloyed ferromagnetic 4 ± 1 nm thiolated Au/Co magnetic NPs with decahedral and icosahedral shape. The NPs were characterized by Cs-corrected scanning transmission electron microscopy (STEM) and weretheoretically studied by Grand Canonical Monte Carlo simulations. Comparison of Z-contrast imaging and energy dispersive x-ray spectroscopy used jointly with STEM simulated images from theoretical models uniquely showed an inhomogeneous alloying with minor segregation. The magnetic measurements obtained from superconducting quantum interference device magnetometer exhibited ferromagnetic behavior. This magnetic nanoalloy in the range of single domain is fully magnetized and carries significance as a promising candidate for magnetic data recording, permanent magnetization, and biomedical applications.

Spider dragline silk is a self-assembling protein that rivals many engineering fibers in strength, extensibility, and toughness, making it a versatile biocompatible material. Here, atomistic-level structures of wildtype MaSp1 protein from the Nephila clavipes spider dragline silk sequences, obtained using an in silico approach based on replica exchange molecular dynamics and explicit water, are subjected to nanomechanical testing and released preceding failure. We approximate the relaxation time from an exponential decay function, and identify permanent changes in secondary structure. Our work provides fundamental insights into the time-dependent properties of silk and possibly other protein materials.