Time-dependent heterogeneity in viscoelastic properties of worm-like micelle solutions

Surfactant molecules often form micelles with a large aspect ratio, “worm-like” micelles, leading to network structures based on their entanglements. By using optical tweezers, we could detect a heterogeneity in the viscoelastic properties of the worm-like micelle solution, which is observed when the measurement timescale is shorter than the relaxation time − the time at which dissolution of the micelle entanglements occurs.