On pinning and snapping of elastic strands

Abstract

The transient network literature up to now has considered that the connection probability of a free strand does not depend on the strand extension, in contrast with the disconnection probability. We argue that, on thermodynamic grounds, both probabilities must have the same dependence on the strand extension. We propose a model for the pinning/snapping of elastic strands reversibly binding to sticky sites, giving explicit expressions for the connection and disconnection rates.