Related papers: Programming complex shapes in thin nematic elastom…

External fields can decidedly alter the free energy landscape of soft materials and can be exploited as a powerful tool for the assembly of targeted nanostructures and colloidal materials. Here, we use computer simulations to demonstrate…

Amorphous materials of homogeneous structures usually suffer from nonuniform deformation under shear, which can develop into shear localization and eventually destructive shear band. One approach to tackle this issue is to introduce an…

Origami describes rules for creating folded structures from patterns on a flat sheet, but does not prescribe how patterns can be designed to fit target shapes. Here, starting from the simplest periodic origami pattern that yields one…

Hard-magnetic soft materials (HMSMs) are particulate composites that consist of a soft matrix embedded with particles of high remnant magnetic induction. Since the application of an external magnetic flux induces a body couple in HMSMs, the…

The macroscopic shape of liquid crystalline elastomers strongly depends on the order parameter of the mesogenic groups. This order can be manipulated if photoisomerisable groups, e.g. containing N=N bonds, are introduced into the material.…

We revisit the light or heat-induced changes in topography of initially flat sheets of solid that elongate or contract along patterned, in-plane director fields. For radial or azimuthal directors, negative Gaussian curvature is generated --…

Morphing surfaces provide a versatile tool to advance the functionalities of high-performance aircraft, soft robots, biomedical devices, and human-machine interfaces. However, achieving precise shape transformation and mechanical property…

We investigate the dynamics of elastic capsules suspended in two-dimensional active nematic fluids using lattice Boltzmann simulations. The capsules, modeled as flexible membranes enclosing active internal regions, exhibit a rich variety of…

A binary mixture of super-paramagnetic colloidal particles is confined between glass plates such that the large particles become fixed and provide a two-dimensional disordered matrix for the still mobile small particles, which form a fluid.…

We review the recent literature on the simulation of the structure and deformation of amorphous glasses, including oxide and metallic glasses. We consider simulations at different length and time scales. At the nanometer scale, we review…

A theory of mechanical behaviour of the magneto-sensitive elastomers is developed in the framework of a linear elasticity approach. Using a regular rectangular lattice model, different spatial distributions of magnetic particles within a…

Microscopic symmetries impose strong constraints on the elasticity of a crystalline solid. In addition to the usual spatial symmetries captured by the tensorial character of the elastic tensor, hidden non-spatial symmetries can occur…

The presence of prestrain can have a tremendous effect on the mechanical behavior of slender structures. Prestrained elastic plates show spontaneous bending in equilibrium -- a property that makes such objects relevant for the fabrication…

Soft particles such as microgels and core-shell particles can undergo significant and anisotropic deformations when adsorbed to a liquid interface. This, in turn, leads to a complex phase behavior upon compression. Here we develop a…

Disclinations lines play a key role in many physical processes, from the fracture of materials to the formation of the early universe. Achieving versatile control over disclinations is key to developing novel electro-optical devices,…

We study the sense in which the continuum limit of a broad class of discrete materials with periodic structures can be viewed as a nonlinear elastic material. While we are not the first to consider this question, our treatment is more…

Liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs) can undergo large reversible contractions along their nematic director upon heating or illumination. A spatially patterned director within a flat LCE sheet thus encodes a pattern of contraction on heating,…

Liquid crystal elastomers are rubbers with liquid crystal order. They contract along their nematic director when heated or illuminated. The shape changes are large and occur in a relatively narrow temperature interval, or at low…

Discrete simulation methods are efficient tools to investigate the complex behaviors of complex fluids made of either dry granular materials or dilute suspensions. By contrast, materials made of soft and/or concentrated units (emulsions,…

We investigate how thin structures change their shape in response to non-mechanical stimuli that can be interpreted as variations in the structure's natural curvature. Starting from the theory of non-Euclidean plates and shells, we derive…