Imagine armor as light as fabric yet stronger than steel, built from materials that link together like molecular chainmail.

Normally molecules are held together by strong covalent bonds in which atoms share electrons. The chemists’ dream was to instead create a mechanical bond, where molecules are interlocked without the ...

A groundbreaking 2D polymer could give a new meaning to body armor and ballistic fabrics with its unbeatable strength and flexibility.

Polymer molecules in various states – solid, melt, solution – are susceptible to covalent bond changes in response to mechanical fields. For example, traditional materials under load stress experience ...