Digital synthesis of free-form multimaterial structures for realization of arbitrary programmed mechanical responses

What is it about?

Can we realize structures that produce any target mechanical behaviors by harnessing both geometric variation and material heterogeneity? Using our multi-material topology optimization approach, multiple materials with different properties are intelligently synthesized into composite structures to achieve arbitrary prescribed responses. We design, analyze, and fabricate these composite structures by multi-material manufacturing, and experimentally validate that their wide-ranging nonlinear responses are physically and accurately realized.

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Photo by David Clode on Unsplash

Photo by David Clode on Unsplash

Why is it important?

Creating structures to realize function-oriented mechanical responses is desired for many applications. Yet, the use of a single material phase and heuristics-based designs may fail to attain specific target behaviors. Here, through a deterministic algorithmic procedure, multiple materials with dissimilar properties are intelligently synthesized into composite structures to achieve arbitrary prescribed responses.