I am currently trying to stretch a sheet (120 x 67 x 3 mm) of PDMS in a solidworks simulation and I am encountering difficulties. It would be better to turn to people that know SolidWorks a lot better than myself.

This sheet has a few characteristics that I am having trouble replicating in simulations. I am trying to stretch the PDMS antithetically (or down the length of the PDMS but in both directions. Since crosslinked PDMS has elastic properties like rubber, when I stretch it longitudinally, then it should shrink in the other two axes. This means that if I place a constraint on any of the edges then the PDMS will not stretch the way that it is supposed to because it the width should decrease as I stretch (except for at the exact point of the two ends because I have a clamp keeping those in place). Also, if I am thinking correctly then I am not able to cut the model in half and then stretch one way because this does not allow the fixed surface to bow in like the middle of the PDMS mold would.

-I want to be able to take one end of the PDMS structure and stretch it longitudinally a certain distance and then look at the displacement that occurs in the middle as well as in the wells that are prepared. Is this possible?

Is it possible to use the flex option to do any of this?

a frustrated student..