Soft Mechanical Metamaterials with Transformable Topology Protected by Stress Caching

Research output: Journal Publications and ReviewsRGC 21 - Publication in refereed journalpeer-review

9 Scopus Citations
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Author(s)

  • Jason Christopher Jolly
  • Binjie Jin
  • YoungJoo Lee
  • Tao Xie
  • Stefano Gonella
  • Kai Sun
  • Xiaoming Mao
  • Shu Yang

Detail(s)

Original languageEnglish
Article number2302475
Journal / PublicationAdvanced Science
Volume10
Issue number22
Online published28 May 2023
Publication statusPublished - 4 Aug 2023
Externally publishedYes

Link(s)

Abstract

Maxwell lattices possess distinct topological states that feature mechanically polarized edge behaviors and asymmetric dynamic responses protected by the topology of their phonon bands. Until now, demonstrations of non-trivial topological behaviors from Maxwell lattices have been limited to fixed configurations or have achieved reconfigurability using mechanical linkages. Here, a monolithic transformable topological mechanical metamaterial is introduced in the form of a generalized kagome lattice made from a shape memory polymer (SMP). It is capable of reversibly exploring topologically distinct phases of the non-trivial phase space via a kinematic strategy that converts sparse mechanical inputs at free edge pairs into a biaxial, global transformation that switches its topological state. All configurations are stable in the absence of confinement or a continuous mechanical input. Its topologically-protected, polarized mechanical edge stiffness is robust against broken hinges or conformational defects. More importantly, it shows that the phase transition of SMPs that modulate chain mobility, can effectively shield a dynamic metamaterial's topological response from its own kinematic stress history, referred to as “stress caching”. This work provides a blueprint for monolithic transformable mechanical metamaterials with topological mechanical behavior that is robust against defects and disorder while circumventing their vulnerability to stored elastic energy, which will find applications in switchable acoustic diodes and tunable vibration dampers or isolators. © 2023 The Authors. Advanced Science published by Wiley-VCH GmbH.

Research Area(s)

  • Maxwell lattices, polarized mechanical behavior, reconfigurable metamaterials, shape memory effect, topological mechanical metamaterials

Citation Format(s)

Soft Mechanical Metamaterials with Transformable Topology Protected by Stress Caching. / Jolly, Jason Christopher; Jin, Binjie; Jin, Lishuai et al.
In: Advanced Science, Vol. 10, No. 22, 2302475, 04.08.2023.

Research output: Journal Publications and ReviewsRGC 21 - Publication in refereed journalpeer-review

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