Colloidal gels are ubiquitous in biology, food science, and materials engineering. They form through the aggregation of sub-micron building blocks - polysaccharide coils, actin filaments, attractive proteins, or cement particles - into a percolated network that behaves as a soft solid. This structure gives rise to rich nonlinear mechanical responses such as strain-stiffening, micro-damage, and fracture. Recent studies have highlighted the crucial role of frozen-in stresses that develop during gelation and later shape the gel’s mechanical behavior. Yet, these internal stresses have only been inferred indirectly at the macroscale, and their spatial distribution at the microscale remains unknown. As a result, the link between local stress heterogeneities and macroscopic failure remains unresolved. This internship, part of the ANR MICROFAT project, aims to connect microscopic frozen-in stresses with the nonlinear mechanical response of protein gels. The student will map local mechanical properties using atomic force microscopy and a state-of-the-art nano-indenter to obtain spatially resolved elastic and residual stress measurements. They will also perform local creep experiments under confocal microscopy to determine how regions with different stress levels deform, stiffen, or fail.