Multi-physics modeling on soft and smart materials for applications and development of soft material-based devices and metamaterials

众所周知，工程中的系统大多使用硬材料，而生命和生物系统通常由软的活性物质组成。这种明显的对比在研究界催生了一个新的软材料工程系统领域。人类社会未来面临的挑战之一将出现在工程和生物系统之间的界面上。为了克服这一未来的挑战，有必要研究具有特殊功能的软材料，因为它们有可能无缝连接工程和生物系统。介电弹性体(DES)和水凝胶作为典型的软、智能材料，由于其独特的性质，特别是在外界刺激下的大变形能力，在各种工程领域受到越来越多的关注。这些材料作为基于软材料的器件具有潜在的应用，包括人工肌肉、软机器人、生物医学设备、软机器、触觉接口等。要更好地开发这些新材料，需要更多地了解控制其微妙的多物理耦合机制的基本原理。因此，本研究的目标是通过阐明多物理耦合、材料粘弹性、几何非线性和各种失效模式之间的复杂相互作用，建立一个严谨的建模和仿真框架，以预测基于软材料和智能材料的系统的性能。这项研究的宏伟愿景是开发多功能软材料器件和超材料，这些器件和超材料具有理想的性能，可以被外部刺激主动控制。理论建模框架以连续介质力学和热力学理论为基础。这些基于软材料的结构的性能将通过理论建模和数值模拟来研究。这一创新的研究项目将充分利用申请人在多物理建模、连续介质力学、复合材料、有限元建模以及结构动态分析方面的专业知识。通过该计划的培训将使HQP在智能和软材料领域拥有丰富的经验和技能，包括在材料特性表征方面的建模开发和数值模拟，以及新的先进材料的设计方法。我们非常乐观地认为，该计划的结果将培育建立行业合作的巨大机会，并提供新的就业机会。该计划的成功完成将有助于开发下一代基于软材料的设备，这些设备将部署在先进材料和制造、生物医学、转换技术等领域的整个经济领域。此外，这项前沿工作还将提升加拿大在全球学术界的形象。

It is well known that systems in engineering mostly use hard materials, while life and biological systems are usually composed of soft and active substances. This conspicuous contrast has prompted a nascent field of soft material engineering systems in the research community. One of the future challenges facing the human society will emerge on the interface between engineering and biological systems. To overcome this future challenge, it is essential to study soft materials with extraordinary functions since they have the potential to seamlessly connect engineering and biological systems. As typical soft and smart materials, dielectric elastomers (DEs) and hydrogels have received growing interest in a variety of engineering fields due to their unique properties, particularly large deformation capability under external stimuli. These materials have potential applications as soft material-based devices including artificial muscles, soft robots, biomedical devices, soft machines, haptic interfaces and etc. Better exploitation of these novel materials requires increased understanding on the fundamentals governing their delicate multi-physics coupling mechanisms. Therefore, the objective of this research program is to establish a rigorous modeling and simulation framework to predict the performance of systems based on soft and smart materials through elucidating the complex interplay among multi-physics coupling, material viscoelasticity, geometric nonlinearity, and various failure modes. The grand vision of this research is to develop multi-functional soft material-based devices and metamaterials with desirable properties that could be actively controlled by external stimuli. The theoretical modeling framework is based on continuum mechanics and the theories of thermodynamics. The performance of these soft material-based structures will be investigated through both theoretical modeling and numerical simulations. This innovative research program will take full advantage of the applicant's expertise in multi-physics modeling, continuum mechanics, composites, finite element modeling, as well as dynamic analysis of structures. The training through this program will equip HQP with extensive experiences and skills in the area of smart and soft materials, including modeling development and numerical simulation in characterizing material properties, as well as design methodology of new advanced materials. We are very optimistic that the outcomes from this program will nurture great opportunities to establish industrial collaborations and provide new job opportunities. The successful completion of this program will help to develop the next-generation soft material-based devices to be deployed across the economy in advanced materials and manufacturing, biomedical, transduction technology, and beyond. In addition, this frontier work will also enhance Canada's profile in the global academic community.