Perversions driven spontaneous symmetry breaking in heterogeneous elastic ribbons

ORAL

Abstract

Perversion structures in an otherwise uniform helical structure are associated with several important concepts in fundamental physics and materials science, including the spontaneous symmetry breaking and the elastic buckling. They also have strong connections with biological motifs (e.g., bacteria shapes and plant tendrils) and have potential applications in micro-muscles and soft robotics. In this work, using a three-dimensional elastomeric bi-stripe model, we investigate the properties of perversions that are independent of the specific ribbon shapes. Several intrinsic features of perversions are revealed, including the spontaneous condensation of energy as well as the distinct energy transfer modes within the perversion region. These properties of perversions associated with the storage of elastic energies can be exploited in the design of actuator devices.

*We thank the financial support from the U.S. Department of Commerce, National Institute of Standards and Technology, the Office of the Director of Defense Research and Engineering (DDR\&E) and the Air Force Office of Scientific Research.

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Authors

  • Shuangping Liu

    • Northwestern Univ

  • Zhenwei Yao

    • Northwestern University
    • Northwestern Univ

  • Monica Olvera de la Cruz

    • Northwestern University
    • Northwestern Univ
    • Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University
    • Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, United States
    • Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL 60208
    • Department of Materials Science and Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois 60208, USA