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Materials science

A hard concept in soft matter

Hydrogels have many potential applications, but their mechanical strength is low. By simultaneously crosslinking two kinds of polymers in different ways, a highly fracture-resistant hydrogel has been made. See Letter p.133

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Figure 1: Energy dissipation in hydrogels.

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Correspondence to Kenneth R. Shull.

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Shull, K. A hard concept in soft matter. Nature 489, 36–37 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1038/489036a

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