Odd Elasticity

In classical structural engineering, materials like steel or concrete are passive: they cannot perform work on their surrounding environment. However, recently, “systems that can convert internal energy into work” are more and more being treated as “active materials”. These active materials are realized by embedding microscopic sensors and actuators (or active robotic contacts) inside a material and then we can create structures that continuously inject energy. This unlocks a mind-bending property called "Odd Elasticity", allowing the material to steer waves or vibrations desired directions, acting like a one-way shock absorber [1]. For modeling these materials, the rules of the game have to change. In this research, you will help realize the mechanical properties of materials with odd elasticity, derive their stiffness tensors, and also figure out the effects of different arrangement of the grains (e.g. honeycomb or cubic arrangements) on the mechanical properties of the material. Finally, we will study how these different material configurations affect the wave propagation process in these materials and thereby enable wave isolation for structural control. The results of the project will directly contribute to a high-impact scientific publication on the future of vibration control.