Textiles: from twisted yarn to topology and mechanics

Fuente: arXiv
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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Dresselhaus, Elizabeth J., Mahmoudi, Sonia, Niu, Lauren, Poincloux, Samuel, Sanchez, Vanessa, Dimitriyev, Michael S.
Format: Preprint
Published: 2026
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author Dresselhaus, Elizabeth J.
Mahmoudi, Sonia
Niu, Lauren
Poincloux, Samuel
Sanchez, Vanessa
Dimitriyev, Michael S.
author_facet Dresselhaus, Elizabeth J.
Mahmoudi, Sonia
Niu, Lauren
Poincloux, Samuel
Sanchez, Vanessa
Dimitriyev, Michael S.
contents While textiles have existed throughout much of human history as complex mechanical metamaterials, textile science has largely been overlooked by the physics community until recently. In this review, we consider the symmetry, topology, and mechanics of woven and knitted materials, showing that they represent a unique, if under-explored, regime of condensed matter. We start with the basic construction and mechanics of spun yarn, reviewing recent developments twisted bundle structures. We then introduce woven and knitted fabrics as materials with layer symmetries that can be topologically characterized as knots and links in the thickened torus. We finally discuss fabric mechanics and geometry in terms of yarn-level geometry, dissipation mechanisms, and defect structures.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2604_09005
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Textiles: from twisted yarn to topology and mechanics
Dresselhaus, Elizabeth J.
Mahmoudi, Sonia
Niu, Lauren
Poincloux, Samuel
Sanchez, Vanessa
Dimitriyev, Michael S.
Soft Condensed Matter
Materials Science
While textiles have existed throughout much of human history as complex mechanical metamaterials, textile science has largely been overlooked by the physics community until recently. In this review, we consider the symmetry, topology, and mechanics of woven and knitted materials, showing that they represent a unique, if under-explored, regime of condensed matter. We start with the basic construction and mechanics of spun yarn, reviewing recent developments twisted bundle structures. We then introduce woven and knitted fabrics as materials with layer symmetries that can be topologically characterized as knots and links in the thickened torus. We finally discuss fabric mechanics and geometry in terms of yarn-level geometry, dissipation mechanisms, and defect structures.
title Textiles: from twisted yarn to topology and mechanics
topic Soft Condensed Matter
Materials Science
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2604.09005