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You know what would really make your metamaterial pop? 6th century Japan tech

Science by a 1,000 cuts: Power of kirigami adds 3D

Engineers at the University of Bristol have applied the traditional Japanese art of Kirigami - where paper is folded and cut to construct intricate models - to create a new shape-changing metamaterial.

The results have been published today in Nature Scientific Reports.

Metamaterials are artificial composite materials that have unusual properties. It is the the shape and geometry of the material, rather than the physical material, that gives it its interesting capabilities.

The main interest driving research in metamaterials is their potential ability to absorb, block, and bend electromagnetic waves, useful for sensors and invisibility cloaking devices.

Take a PEEK at what the boffins made earlier. Sorry! Photo credit: University of Bristol

Kirigami is often a fiddly exercise that requires a high level of precision. But by using a high-tech cutting machine, the Blackman & White Genesis 2100 ply cutter, the tedious work of making tiny scores and cuts in the material has been left to the machine.

The engineers fashioned the metamaterial out of PEEK, an organic thermoplastic polymer often used in piston parts, valves and cable insulation in the aerospace industry.

“Kirigami is the ancient art of cutting and folding paper. Here we have applied it to lift a two-dimensional shape to a three-dimensional one. We apply the folds at certain angles. These angles can be changed to give a new shape and therefore, different mechanical properties,” Fabrizio Scarpa, co-author of the paper and professor of smart materials and structures at the University of Bristol, told The Register.

It’s a powerful technique because it can be scaled to different sizes and used with different materials, Scarpa explained.

At the smaller end, it could be used for drug delivery. The potential for drug-dispensing hydrogels to expand and fit the exact shape of a wound has already been demonstrated by Cornell University.

The team at the University of Bristol are looking at the opposite end of the scale, with a focus for medical applications.

Specifically, they are hoping to design flexible prosthetics to help people with mobility issues affected by multiple sclerosis. That could be extended to making robot limbs or even giant space antennas. Electronic circuits could be printed onto the metamaterial, which opens up even more possible applications, Scarpa said. ®

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