Answers are grounded in this paper and cite their sources.
It is shown that the statistical mechanics of an entanglement produced by looping a polymer chain around an infinitely long straight bar can be treated exactly, essentially because successive turns of the chain around the bar can be considered as constituting a Markoff process. The elastic response of such a loop to a force exerted on one of its segments is nonlinear and surprisingly complex.
No takes yet. Share an insight, caveat, or question.
Prager et al. (1967) studied this question.
Synapse has enriched 10 related papers. Consider them for comparative context: