CAREER: Functional Biomimetric Materials with Extreme Topology

本学院早期职业发展（Career）计划奖的研究目标是研究具有极端拓扑特征的仿生材料的力学行为。这将通过发展预测理论和计算方法来理解仿生系统的机械变形，并通过在微纳米尺度上进行详细的实验来实现。将研究三种不同系统的力学行为，包括具有非均相组织的细胞结构、具有坚韧界面的复合材料和功能聚合物表面。该研究将为仿生材料的行为提供新的认识，并将阐明这些系统中拓扑结构、结构组织、力学和功能之间复杂的相互作用。这项研究将为创造具有可控摩擦、粘附和机械性能的功能表面铺平道路，并为设计具有定制性能的介观材料提供指导。仿生材料力学新知识的创造有望在多功能材料、表面工程和涂层、组织工程、纳米技术和光学的发展中产生广泛的影响。计划通过开发反映大学水平的跨学科哲学的新课程和对K-12学生、本科生、研究生和高中教师的实践培训，将研究成果与教育工作联系起来。教育和研究计划将结合在一起，通过在K-12推广的背景下开发一个教育网站“形状科学”，并组织科学/技术和艺术研讨会（STArt）。外展活动将影响大量少数民族和未被充分代表的群体，该项目创造了一个不同寻常的跨学科和全面的博士体验。

The research objective of this Faculty Early Career Development (CAREER) Program award is to study the mechanical behavior of biomimetic materials with extreme topological features. This will be carried out by developing predictive theoretical and computational methods to understand the mechanical deformation of biomimetic systems and by performing detailed experiments at the micro- and nanoscale. Mechanical behavior of three different systems will be studied including cellular structures with heterogeneous organization, composites with tough interfaces, and functional polymeric surfaces. The research will provide new understanding of the behavior of biomimetic materials and will elucidate the intricate interplay between topology, structural organization, mechanics and function in these systems. This study will pave the way for creating functional surfaces with controllable frictional, adhesion and mechanical properties and provide guidance for the design of mesoscopic materials with tailorable properties. The creation of new knowledge on the mechanics of biomimetic materials is expected to have broad implications in the development of multifunctional materials, surface engineering and coatings, tissue engineering, nanotechnology and optics. Strong efforts are planned to link the research results to educational efforts, by developing new courses reflecting interdisciplinary philosophy at the university level and practical training for K-12 students, undergraduates, graduate students and high school teachers. The education and research plans will tie together, by developing an education website "Science of Shapes" in the context of K-12 outreach and by organizing the Science/Technology and Art Workshop (STArt). The outreach activities will affect large bodies of minorities and underrepresented groups, and the project creates an unusually cross-disciplinary and well-rounded PhD experience.