Shear modulus of two-dimensional foams: The effect of area dispersity and disorder

Abstract

We use the Surface Evolver to determine the shear modulus G of a dry 2D foam of 2500 bubbles, using both extensional and simple shear. We examine G for a range of monodisperse, bidisperse and polydisperse foams, and relate it to various measures of the structural disorder of each foam. In all cases, the shear modulus of a foam decreases with increasing disorder.