Related papers: Static bistability of spherical caps
We consider the point indentation of a pressurized, spherical elastic shell. Previously it was shown that such shells wrinkle once the indentation reaches a threshold value. Here, we study the behaviour of this system beyond the onset of…
We explore the intrinsic dynamics of spherical shells immersed in a fluid in the vicinity of their buckled state, through experiments and 3D axisymmetric simulations. The results are supported by a theoretical model that accurately…
Shells, when confined, can deform in a broad assortment of shapes and patterns, often quite dissimilar to what is produced by their flat counterparts (plates). In this work we discuss the morphological landscape of shells deposited on a…
We study the dynamics of snap-through when viscoelastic effects are present. To gain analytical insight we analyse a modified form of the Mises truss, a single-degree-of-freedom structure, which features an `inverted' shape that snaps to a…
We study the snapping instability of a spherical elastic shell induced by a viscous flow, the umbrella flipping problem when life is at low Reynolds numbers. We combine precision desktop-scale experiments, fluid-structure simulations, shell…
We study a chemically active binary mixture undergoing phase separation and show that under non-equilibrium conditions, stable liquid spherical shells can form via a spinodal instability in the droplet center. A single liquid shell tends to…
We present a detailed asymptotic analysis of the point indentation of an unpressurized, spherical elastic shell. Previous analyses of this classic problem have assumed that for sufficiently large indentation depths, such a shell deforms by…
Under increasing compression, an unbuckled shell is in a metastable state which becomes increasingly precarious as the buckling load is approached. So to induce premature buckling a lateral disturbance will have to overcome a decreasing…
The elastocapillary instability of a flexible plate plunged in a liquid bath is analysed theoretically. We show that the plate can bend due to two separate destabilizing mechanisms, when the liquid is partially wetting the solid. For…
In this work, we consider the stability of a spherical shell under combined loading from a uniform external pressure and a homogenous natural curvature. Non-mechanical stimuli, such as one that tends to modify the rest curvature of an…
Bistable shells can reversibly change between two stable configurations with very little energetic input. Understanding what governs the shape and snap-through criteria of these structures is crucial for designing devices that utilize…
Multistable structures are objects with more than one stable conformation, exemplified by the simple switch. Continuum versions are often elastic composite plates or shells, such as the common measuring tape or the slap bracelet, both of…
Curvature and mechanics are intimately connected for thin materials, and this coupling between geometry and physical properties is readily seen in folded structures from intestinal villi and pollen grains, to wrinkled membranes and…
Tensile instability, often observed in smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH), is a numerical artifact that manifests itself by unphysical clustering or separation of particles. The instability originates in estimating the derivatives of the…
Bistable structures associated with non-linear deformation behavior, exemplified by the Venus flytrap and slap bracelet, can switch between different functional shapes upon actuation. Despite numerous efforts in modeling such large…
Topologically stable structures include vortices in a wide variety of matter, such as skyrmions in ferro- and antiferromagnets, and hedgehog point defects in liquid crystals and ferromagnets. These are characterized by integer-valued…
We study the origins of multiple mechanically stable states exhibited by an elastic shell comprising multiple conical frusta, a geometry common to reconfigurable corrugated structures such as `bendy straws'. This multistability is…
We investigate the relationship between pre-buckling and post-buckling states as a function of shell properties, within the deflation process of shells of an isotropic material. With an original and low-cost set-up that allows to measure…
We investigate the effect of defect geometry in dictating the sensitivity of the critical buckling conditions of spherical shells under external pressure loading. Specifically, we perform a comparative study between shells containing…
Snap-buckling is a rapid shape transition in slender structures, appearing as a fundamental switching mechanism of natural and man-made systems. Boundary conditions of structures are crucial to predict and control their snap-buckling…