Related papers: Robust Myco-Composites as a Platform for Versatile…
Field induced assembly of reconfigurable structures with complex hierarchical configurations has recently become an area of intense research with the promise for exciting applications in programmable self-assembly and nano/microstructure…
Growing soft materials which follow a 3D path in space are critical to applications such as search and rescue and minimally invasive surgery. Here, we present a concept for a single-input growing multi-stable soft material, based on a…
The study is devoted to the geometrically nonlinear simulation of fiber-reinforced composite structures. The applicability of the multiplicative approach to the simulation of viscoelastic properties of a composite material is assessed,…
One of the many secrets to the success and prevalence of insects is their versatile, robust, and complex exoskeleton morphology. A fundamental challenge in insect-inspired robotics has been the fabrication of robotic exoskeletons that can…
Inorganic/inorganic composites are found in multiple applications crucial for the energy transition, from nuclear reactor to energy storage devices. Their microstructures dictate a number of properties, such as mass transport or fracture…
Long-duration human missions to Mars will require autonomous systems capable of converting in situ resources into structural materials, tools, and functional components. More broadly, such systems represent a class of resource-limited…
Deployable structures, essential across various engineering applications ranging from umbrellas to satellites, are evolving to include soft, morphable designs where geometry drives transformation. However, a major challenge for soft…
A uniformly coated MoS2/Carbon-nanocomposite with three-dimensional hierarchical architecture based on carbonized bacterial cellulose (CBC) nanofibers is synthesized by a facile one-step hydrothermal method followed by thermal annealing at…
A detailed understanding of the interface between living cells and substrate materials is of rising importance in many fields of medicine, biology and biotechnology. Cells at interfaces often form epithelia. The physical barrier that they…
Slicks are thin viscous films that can be found at the air--water interface of water bodies such as lakes, rivers and oceans. These micro-layers are enriched in surfactants, organic matter, and microorganisms, and exhibit steep physical and…
The colonisation of a soft passive material by motile cells such as bacteria is common in biology. The resulting colonies of the invading cells are often observed to exhibit intricate patterns whose morphology and dynamics can depend on a…
The structural complexity of metamaterials is limitless, although in practice, most designs comprise periodic architectures which lead to materials with spatially homogeneous features. More advanced tasks, arising in e.g. soft robotics,…
Inclusions dissolved in an anisotropic quasi-2D membrane acquire new types of interactions that can drive assembly of complex structures and patterns. We study colloidal membranes composed of a binary mixture of long and short rods, such…
Designing metal-organic frameworks (MOFs) with novel chemistries is a longstanding challenge due to their large combinatorial space and complex 3D arrangements of the building blocks. While recent deep generative models have enabled…
Microfluidic chips provide unparalleled control over droplets and jets, which have advanced all natural sciences. However, microfluidic applications could be vastly expanded by increasing the per-channel throughput and directly exploiting…
Integrated micro-nanochannel networks in fluidic devices are desirable in a number of applications ranging from self-healing/cooling materials to bioengineering. The conventional micro-manufacturing techniques are capable of either…
Soil microbial communities are known to be robust against perturbations such as nutrition inputs, which appears as an obstacle for the soil improvement. On the other hand, its adaptable aspect has been also reported. Here we propose simple…
Collections of simple, self-propelled colloidal particles exhibit complex, emergent dynamical behavior, with promising applications in microrobotics. When confined within a deformable vesicle, self-propelled rods cluster and align,…
The industrial implementation of biofuel production from lignocellulosic biomass faces a number of economic obstacles. One of these is the cost of enzymes, typically used for cellulose hydrolysis. Nature provides some hints towards the…
Smart surfaces that reversibly change the interfacial friction coefficients in response to external stimuli enable a wide range of applications, such as grips, seals, brake pads, packaging films, and fabrics. Here a new concept of such a…