Characterizing tendon material properties
In this project, students will build upon a Amelia Acker's ('26) senior thesis "Characterizing the Viscoelastic Behavior of the Bullfrog Plantaris Tendon". The goal is to perform dynamic mechanical analysis (DMA) on tendons to predict how they stretch and release energy during fast movements. By performing small mechanical oscillations of the tendon at various frequencies, we can map the frequency-dependent material response into a time-domain relaxation modulus. We can also take advantage of time-temperature superposition, in which a material's response at high frequencies can be inferred from how it responds to colder temperature (cooling it down slows down the molecular movements in the material and tricks it into thinking it is being deformed faster).
One challenge of this measurement is that tendon is a non-linear viscoelastic and poroelastic material. These complications make it an interesting system to test more advanced models and approaches to measurement. It also provides rich ground for you to dive deep into tendon mechanical behavior and become an expert on viscoelasticity.
With the tendon's viscoelasticity characterized, we can then pursue important biologically relevant questions of how they are used to drive fast motion. How much energy do animals recover from their tendons during their jumps? How efficient are tendons at storing and releasing elastic energy during cyclic gaits like running?
Essay Prompt: What interests you about this research and what do you hope to get out of the research experience? What relevant experience/knowledge to you have that will help you in this project?
You will be part of a team of HMC students working on a set of related projects at the intersection between physics, materials science, biology, and robotics. Successfully completing this project and using the measured tendon viscoelasticity to predict biomechanical performance will give you an opportunity to present your work at a conference and become a published author.