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Ribbon (mathematics)

Geometrical smooth strip From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

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In differential geometry, a ribbon (or strip) is the combination of a smooth space curve and its corresponding normal vector. More formally, a ribbon denoted by includes a curve given by a three-dimensional vector , depending continuously on the curve arc-length (), and a unit vector perpendicular to at each point.[1] Ribbons have seen particular application as regards DNA.[2]

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Properties and implications

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The ribbon is called simple if is a simple curve (i.e. without self-intersections) and closed and if and all its derivatives agree at and . For any simple closed ribbon the curves given parametrically by are, for all sufficiently small positive , simple closed curves disjoint from .

The ribbon concept plays an important role in the Călugăreanu formula,[3] [4] that states that

where is the asymptotic (Gauss) linking number, the integer number of turns of the ribbon around its axis; denotes the total writhing number (or simply writhe), a measure of non-planarity of the ribbon's axis curve; and is the total twist number (or simply twist), the rate of rotation of the ribbon around its axis.

Ribbon theory investigates geometric and topological aspects of a mathematical reference ribbon associated with physical and biological properties, such as those arising in topological fluid dynamics, DNA modeling and in material science.

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