Figure 2: Tuning stress relaxation in 3kPa ionically crosslinked hydrogels by varying alginate molecular weight.

(Adapted with permission from Lee et al., 2017) (a) Representative stress relaxation profiles for hydrogels with varying alginate molecular weight. (b) Characteristic timescale of relaxation for the different alginate hydrogels. (c) Initial elastic modulus (stiffness) for the different alginate hydrogels. (d) Loss tangent (ratio of loss modulus to storage modulus) for the different alginate hydrogels. All mechanical tests were conducted in unconfined compression. All data are shown as mean ± std. dev.