Mechanics of large folds in thin interfacial films.

Abstract

A thin film confined to a liquid interface responds to uniaxial compression by wrinkling, and then by folding, that has been solved exactly before self-contact. Here, we address the mechanics of large folds, i.e., folds that absorb a length much larger than the wrinkle wavelength. With scaling arguments and numerical simulations, we show that the antisymmetric fold is energetically favorable and can absorb any excess length at zero pressure. Then, motivated by puzzles arising in the comparison of this simple model to experiments on lipid monolayers or capillary rafts, we discuss how to incorporate film weight, self-adhesion, or energy dissipation.