2.9. Rheological characterization of hydrogels

Hydrogel mechanical properties were determined via bulk oscillatory rheology.³⁶ Briefly, hydrogels were formed directly on an AR‐G2 rheometer (AR‐G2, TA instruments, New Castle, DE) by mixing hydrogel precursor solutions (as given above, at room temperature). A 20‐mm diameter stainless steel cone and plate geometry (1°) was used in all measurements. Time‐sweep measurements were obtained within the linear viscoelastic regime using 1% constant strain and 6 rad/s angular frequency. The storage moduli after reaching the plateau region were recorded as the final storage moduli.