CAREER: Mechanics of Interfaces in Soft Materials

这个教师早期职业发展计划（CAREER）项目将通过建立一个新的多尺度和多物理建模和仿真平台来支持软材料界面力学的基础研究。软硬材料（软硬）或软硬（软硬）材料之间的界面在自然界和工程应用中无处不在，例如用于承重的骨骼肌腱，用于捕获猎物的舌头粘液，支架上生长的组织，以及用于可拉伸电子产品的弹性体上的硅键合。对软材料界面力学的基本理解将有助于诊断生物关节的故障，并设计水下粘合剂贴片，柔性电子产品以及坚固，坚韧和轻质的复合材料，这些都是促进国家健康，繁荣和福利所迫切需要的。综合教育计划包括一个互动教学模块，演示肥皂泡，儿童贴纸和面团的推广计划，参加夏季研究实习生计划的高中生，并在锡拉丘兹大学的研究生和本科生课程的计算工具的整合。每年将在曼利乌斯图书馆为K-12学生和公众组织一个"科学与游戏"外展计划，以促进STEM教育。此外，锡拉丘兹大学的女性科学与工程项目将鼓励来自代表性不足人群的学生参与。软材料界面力学的一个主要挑战是，其力学行为本质上是多尺度和多物理场相互作用，不仅取决于界面处的微观结构，而且还取决于表面和体变形的非线性强耦合。这一挑战将通过在具有高并行计算效率的统一框架中无缝集成不同尺度的模型技术来解决。具体任务包括：（1）通过晶格模型将粗粒模型和有限元方法连接起来，并在大规模原子/分子大规模并行模拟器（LAMMPS）中实现该模型，（2）在宏观水平上将软-软界面的变形构型与其分子结构、非线性变形和表面应力联系起来，并研究多尺度耦合如何控制软固体大变形湿粘附中的力，（3）研究宏观变形约束与能量耗散、细观空化、原纤化和不稳定性以及微尺度分子和聚合物结构协同决定了软硬界面的强度和韧性，并衍生出通知界面力的微结构。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准。

This Faculty Early Career Development Program (CAREER) project will support fundamental research on the mechanics of interfaces in soft materials by establishing a novel multiscale and multiphysics modeling and simulation platform. Interfaces between soft and hard materials (soft-hard) or soft and soft (soft-soft) materials are ubiquitous in nature and engineering applications, such as tendon on bone for load-bearing, mucus on tongue for prey capture, growing tissues on scaffolds, and bonding silicon on elastomers for stretchable electronics. A fundamental understanding of mechanics of soft material interfaces will help diagnose failures of biological joints and design underwater adhesive patches, flexible electronics, and strong, tough and lightweight composites, which are urgently needed to advance the national health, prosperity, and welfare. The integrated education plan includes an interactive teaching module with demonstrations of soap bubbles, kids' stickers and poly dough for outreach programs, participations in summer research intern programs for high school students, and integration of computational tools in the graduate and undergraduate curriculums at Syracuse University. A "Science and Play" outreach program for K-12 students and the general public will be organized in the Manlius Library annually to promote STEM education. Furthermore, the Women in Science and Engineering program at Syracuse University will be leveraged to encourage the participation of students from underrepresented populations.A major challenge in the mechanics of interfaces in soft materials is that their mechanical behaviors are intrinsically multiscale and multiphysics interactions, which are determined not only by microstructures at interfaces but also the nonlinear strong coupling of surface and bulk deformations. This challenge will be tackled by seamlessly integrating model techniques at different scales in a unified framework with high parallel computation efficiency. Specific tasks include: (1) to bridge coarse-grained models and finite element methods through lattice models and implement the model in the large-scale atomic/molecular massively parallel simulator (LAMMPS), (2) to link deformed configurations of soft-soft interfaces with their molecular structures and nonlinear deformation and surface stress at macroscale levels and study how multiscale couplings govern forces in wet adhesion with large deformation of soft solids, (3) to investigate how macroscale deformation confinement and energy dissipation, mesoscale cavitation, fibrillation and instabilities and microscale molecular and polymer structures synergistically determine the strength and toughness of soft-hard interfaces and derive microstructures informed interfacial force-separation law for soft adhesives.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.