Bacteria often adhere to surfaces, where they form communities known as biofilms. Recently, it has been shown that biofilm formation initiates with the microscopically heterogeneous deposition of a skeleton of extracellular polymeric substances (EPS
A deviation from the ideal elastic behaviour of a material due to an internal relief of stress under constant strain. Some materials, when put under mechanical tension, undergo internal flow processes (termed 'creep') that are at least partially irreversible and lead to a constant deformation of...