Structural failure is a critically important design consideration in many engineering applications. Nature provides a number of interesting examples of lightweight structural features that exhibit outstanding failure characteristics. Recent progress in additive manufacturing has facilitated precise control over geometric features, allowing for the implementation of bio-inspired structural designs on a layer-by-layer basis. In this talk, […]

Two dimensional (2D) materials with atomic-scale thickness like graphene exhibit substantial in-plane stiffness and strength while maintaining significant out-of-plane flexibility. This enables the assembly of graphene into complex multilayer and even three-dimensional (3D) structures through a unique combination of self-folding, self-tearing, and nearly frictionless self-propagation, all driven by interfacial energy. We call this phenomenon ‘graphene […]