SYnthesizing 3D METAmaterials for RF, microwave and THz applications (SYMETA)

用于射频、微波和太赫兹应用的合成3D元材料（SYMETA）的成果有可能产生重大的学术、经济、社会和环境影响。为了实现这些成果，SYMETA将汇集来自五所机构的工程、物理和材料科学方面的领先专业知识：拉夫堡大学、埃克塞特大学、谢菲尔德大学、牛津大学和伦敦大学玛丽皇后学院，以及来自国防和电子制造等一系列领域的十二个工业合作伙伴。大挑战将由拉夫堡大学领导。SYMETA响应大挑战3：工程跨越长度尺度，从原子到应用程序。这一挑战领域要求研究人员考虑产品和系统的跨尺度设计，寻找弥合中尺度（中间尺度）差距的新方法，并考虑到许多工程系统是动态的。SYMETA的宏伟愿景是使用新兴的增材制造（AM）提供一系列新颖的多功能3D超材料（具有天然材料中通常没有的结构的合成复合材料），并有可能支持单一的“设计-构建”过程。我们的目标是编译一个元原子（超材料的基本构建块）的调色板，然后系统地组织这些包含物以提供所需的整体性质，从而开辟了大量的新结构。这不仅将改善现有的应用，还将通过打破创新障碍来激发新的应用。将这些新颖的结构引入复杂的电子设计世界将为电子设计和制造提供一种全新的方式。超材料将被开发，为终端用户提供他们所需的电磁响应，用于广泛的通信，电子，能源和国防应用。构成超材料的超原子将是微尺度的，即与操作波长相比是小的，并且由一系列新的和现有的原材料制造，包括并入电介质、金属和磁性部件。它们将促进复杂的多组件系统，包括电感器，电容器和电阻器等元件，通过传输线和匹配电路和滤波器，在混合和多系统AM中创建-减少浪费，成本和时间尺度。SYMETA项目有三个总体研究目标：1.使用合适的材料合成3D元原子的调色板。使用工艺高效AM构建设计者指定的元原子3D排列以创建超材料3。为射频、微波和太赫兹频率范围的应用建立演示器。补充这些研究目标，SYMETA将：4。通过汇集来自多个机构和公司的多学科专业知识，建立一个新知识的队列，并在学术网络中分享这些知识。5.让行业、相关专业机构和更广泛的学术界参与进来，以确保这项研究的潜力得到认可和实现。将令人兴奋的科学转化并浓缩为关键信息和成果，并将其传达给公众，以提高公众对科学的理解。SYMETA可能产生的影响是多方面的。它有可能改变制造工艺，大大缩短创新技术到达消费者手中的时间，同时减少浪费，消除与制造相关的一些更有害的过程，例如使用苛刻的化学品。这是转型科学，它可以使英国处于工程创新的领先地位，刺激经济增长，并在从消费电子到国防和太空的许多领域开辟巨大的创新潜力。

The outcomes of SYnthesizing 3D METAmaterials for RF, Microwave and THz Applications (SYMETA) have the potential for significant academic, economic, societal and environmental impacts. To achieve these outcomes SYMETA will bring together leading expertise in engineering, physics and materials science from five institutions: Loughborough University, University of Exeter, University of Sheffield, Oxford University and Queen Mary, University of London together with twelve industrial partners from a range of sectors including defence and electronics manufacture. The Grand Challenge will be led by Loughborough University. SYMETA responds to Grand Challenge 3: Engineering across length scales, from atoms to applications. This Challenge area requires researchers to consider design across the scales for both products and systems looking at new approaches to bridge the meso-scale (intermediate-scale) gap and taking into consideration that many engineering systems are dynamic. SYMETA's grand vision is to deliver a palette of novel, multi-functional 3D metamaterials (synthetic composite materials with structure that exhibit properties not usually found in natural materials) using emerging additive manufacturing (AM), with the potential to support a single 'design-build' process. Our goal, to compile a palette of meta-atoms (the basic building blocks of metamaterials) and then to organise these inclusions systematically to give the desired bulk properties, opens up a plethora of new structures. This will not only improve existing applications but inspire new applications by breaking down barriers to innovation.Introducing these novel structures into the complex world of electronic design will offer a radical new way of designing and manufacturing electronics. The metamaterials will be developed to give end-users the electromagnetic responses they require, for a wide range of communication, electronics, energy and defence applications. The meta-atoms comprising the metamaterial will be micro-scale, i.e. small in comparison to the wavelength of operation, and fabricated from a range of new and existing raw materials, including the incorporation of dielectric, metallic and magnetic components. They will facilitate complex multi-component systems, incorporating elements such as inductors, capacitors, and resistors through to transmission lines and matching circuits and filters, to be created in hybrid and multi system AM - reducing waste, cost and timescales.The SYMETA project has three overarching research goals:1. To synthesize a palette of 3D meta-atoms using suitable materials.2. To construct designer-specified 3D arrangements of meta-atoms using process efficient AM to create metamaterials3. To build demonstrators for applications at RF, microwave and THz frequency ranges.Supplementing these research goals SYMETA will:4. Build a cohort of new knowledge by bringing together multi-disciplinary expertise from a number of institutions and companies and share this knowledge across academic networks. 5. Engage industry, sector relevant professional bodies and the wider academic community to ensure that the potential of this research is recognised and realised. To translate and condense the exciting science to key messages and outcomes and to communicate these to the public to boost the public understanding of science. The likely impacts of the SYMETA are manifold. It has the potential to transform manufacturing processes and to significantly shorten the time it takes for innovative new technologies to reach consumers whilst reducing waste and removing some of the more harmful processes associated with the manufacturing such as the use of harsh chemicals. This is transformation science, which could place the UK at the leading edge of engineering innovation stimulating economic growth and opening up huge potential for innovation in many sectors from consumer electronics through to defence and space.