Strain dependent viscous response describes the mechanics of cohesionless soft granular materials

Hydrogel packings reveal a curious rate dependence that can be capture with a modified non-linear spring-dashpot model.

Chandan Shakya, Luca Placidi, Anil Misra, Lars Kool, Anke Lindner, Jasper van der Gucht, Joshua A. Dijksman — Physical Review Materials 10 (2026)