Effects of Electron Irradiation and Temperature on Mechanical Properties of Polyimide Film.

Polyimide (PI) is widely deployed in space missions due to its good radiation resistance and durability. The influences from radiation and harsh temperatures should be carefully evaluated during the long-term service life. In the current work, the coupled thermal and radiation effects on the mechanical properties of PI samples were quantitatively investigated via experiments. At first, various PI specimens were prepared, and electron irradiation tests were conducted with different fluences. Then, both uniaxial tensile tests at room temperature and the dynamic mechanical analysis at varied temperatures of PI specimens with and without electron irradiation were performed. After that, uniaxial tensile tests at low and high temperatures were performed. The fracture surface of the PI film was observed using a scanning electron microscope, and its surface topography was measured using atomic force microscopy. In the meantime, the Fourier-transform infrared spectrum tests were conducted to check for chemical changes. In conclusion, the tensile tests showed that electron irradiation has a negligible effect during the linear stretching period but significantly impacts the hardening stage and elongation at break. Moreover, electron irradiation slightly influences the thermal properties of PI according to the differential scanning calorimetry results. However, both high and low temperatures dramatically affect the elastic modulus and elongation at break of PI.

A mechanics model in design of flexible nozzle with multiple movable hinge boundaries.

In this paper, we propose a modified variational approach to predict the morphology of the flexible nozzle used in wind tunnel. Different from previous studies, the movements of the multiple hinges are considered as movable displacement boundary conditions during establishing the potential energy functional. The cubic spline interpolation method is employed to supply the supplementary boundary conditions in calculation of the functional minimization problem. Current analytical model is verified by experiments carried out on a fixed-flexible nozzle structure whose geometries and materials are the same as those from a commissioned supersonic nozzle. The maximum deviation between the predictions from theoretical method and laser displacement testing does not exceed 0.5 mm. This method can also deal with the large deflection beam problem with multiple movable boundaries.

Symmetry Breaking and Anomalous Conductivity in a Double-Moiré Superlattice.

In a two-dimensional moiré superlattice, the atomic reconstruction of constituent layers could introduce significant modifications to the lattice symmetry and electronic structure at small twist angles. Here, we employ conductive atomic force microscopy to investigate a twisted trilayer graphene double-moiré superlattice. Two sets of moiré superlattices are observed. At neighboring domains of the large moiré, the current exhibits either 2- or 6-fold rotational symmetry, indicating delicate symmetry breaking beyond the rigid model. Moreover, an anomalous current appears at the "A-A" stacking site of the larger moiré, contradictory to previous observations on twisted bilayer graphene. Both behaviors can be understood by atomic reconstruction, and we also show that the measured current is dominated by the tip-graphene contact resistance that maps the local work function qualitatively. Our results reveal new insights of atomic reconstruction in novel moiré superlattices and opportunities for manipulating exotic quantum states on the basis of twisted van der Waals heterostructures.

Mechanical Behaviors of the Origami-Inspired Horseshoe-Shaped Solar Arrays.

The importance of flexibility has been widely noticed and concerned in the design and application of space solar arrays. Inspired by origami structures, we introduce an approach to realizing stretchable and bendable solar arrays via horseshoe-shaped substrate design. The structure has the ability to combine rigid solar cells and soft substrates skillfully, which can prevent damage during deformations. The finite deformation theory is adapted to find the analytic model of the horseshoe-shaped structure via simplified beam theory. In order to solve the mechanical model, the shooting method, a numerical method to solve ordinary differential equation (ODE) is employed. Finite element analyses (FEA) are also performed to verify the developed theoretical model. The influences of the geometric parameters on deformations and forces are analyzed to achieve the optimal design of the structures. The stretching tests of horseshoe-shaped samples manufactured by three-dimensional (3D) printing are implemented, whose results shows a good agreement with those from theoretical predictions. The developed models can serve as the guidelines for the design of flexible solar arrays in spacecraft.

Elastic properties and intrinsic strength of two-dimensional InSe flakes.

The mechanical properties of two-dimensional (2D) materials are critical for their applications in functional devices as well as for strain engineering. Here, we report the Young's modulus and breaking strength of multilayered InSe, an emerging 2D semiconductor of the layered group III chalcogenide. Few-layer InSe flaks were exfoliated from bulk InSe crystal onto Si/SiO2 substrate with micro-fabricated holes, and indentation tests were carried out using an atomic force microscopy probe. In combination with both continuum analysis and finite element simulation, we measured the Young's modulus of multilayer 2D InSe (>5 L) to be 101.37 ± 17.93 GPa, much higher than its bulk counterpart, while its breaking strength is determined to be 8.68 GPa, approaching the theoretical limit of 10.1 GPa. Density functional theory calculations were also carried out to explain the insensitivity of Young's modulus to the layer count. It is found that 2D InSe is softer than most 2D materials, and exhibits breaking strength higher than that of carbon fiber, yet remaining more compliant, making it ideal for flexible electronics applications. The reliability of our method is also validated by measurement of graphene.

An analytic model of microfluidic system triggered by thermal expansion.

Microfluidics shows a great importance in fluid control in biomedicine area. Recently, a programmable soft microfluidic system for applications of pharmacology and optogenetics is reported in Cell. Based on the theory of thermal expansion, we established an analytic model to characterize the injection process of the microfluidic systems. Finite element analyses (FEA) were employed to validate this model. The comparison between the analytic model and FEA well demonstrates the practicality of the analytic model. We also make a parametric analysis of sphere radius, central angle and expandable layer thickness on the infusion volume of the system to optimize the design.

An analytic model of two-level compressive buckling with applications in the assembly of free-standing 3D mesostructures.

Recently developed methods for mechanically-guided assembly exploit stress release in prestretched elastomeric substrates to guide the controlled formation of complex three-dimensional (3D) mesostructures in advanced functional materials and integrated electronic devices. The techniques of interfacial photopolymerization allow for realization of such 3D mesostructures in free-standing forms, separated from their elastomeric substrate, via formation of an integrated base layer. Theoretical models for the complex modes of deformation associated with this scheme are essential in the optimal design of the process parameters. Here, we present an analytic finite-deformation model of an isolated double-ribbon structure to describe the buckling process and morphology change of the assembled mesostructures upon removal of the substrate. As validated by finite element analyses (FEA), this analytic model can accurately predict the profiles of the double-ribbon structure with a range of different design parameters. We further illustrate the extension of this model to the analyses of 3D mesostructures with different geometries. Inspired by analytic results for flexible base structures, combined experimental results and numerical simulations demonstrate that mechanical interactions between the two different layers can be leveraged to achieve hierarchical assembly of 3D mesostructures. These findings could be useful in further advances in designs of free-standing 3D mesostructures based on mechanically-guided assembly.

Analyses of postbuckling in stretchable arrays of nanostructures for wide-band tunable plasmonics.

Plasmonic nanostructures integrated with soft, elastomeric substrates provide an unusual platform with capabilities in mechanical tuning of key optical properties, where the surface configurations can undergo large, nonlinear transformations. Arrays of planar plasmonic nanodiscs in this context can, for example, transform into three-dimensional (3D) layouts upon application of large levels of stretching to the substrate, thereby creating unique opportunities in wide-band tunable optics and photonic sensors. In this paper, a theoretical model is developed for a plasmonic system that consists of discrete nanodiscs on an elastomeric substrate, establishing the relation between the postbuckling configurations and the applied strain. Analytic solutions of the amplitude and wavelength during postbuckling are obtained for different buckling modes, which agree well with the results of finite-element analyses and experiment measurements. Further analyses show that increasing the nanodisc distribution yields increased 3D configurations with larger amplitudes and smaller wavelengths, given the same level of stretching. This study could serve as a design reference for future optimization of mechanically tunable plasmonic systems in similar layouts.

Uniform stress fields inside multiple inclusions in an elastic infinite plane under plane deformation.

Multiple elastic inclusions with uniform internal stress fields in an infinite elastic matrix are constructed under given uniform remote in-plane loadings. The method is based on the sufficient and necessary condition imposed on the boundary value of a holomorphic function that guarantees the existence of the holomorphic function in a multiply connected region. The unknown shape of each of the multiple inclusions is characterized by a conformal mapping. This work focuses on a major large class of multiple inclusions characterized by a simple condition that covers and is much beyond the known related results reported in previous works. Extensive examples of multiple inclusions with or without geometrical symmetry are shown. Our results showed that the inclusion shapes obtained for the uniformity of internal stress fields are independent of the remote loading only when all of the multiple inclusions have the same shear modulus as that of the matrix. Moreover, specific conditions are derived on remote loading, elastic constants of the inclusions and uniform internal stress fields, which guarantee the existence of multiple symmetric inclusions or multiple rotationally symmetrical inclusions with uniform internal stress fields.