Double-network-inspired mechanical metamaterials
- PMID: 40269148
- DOI: 10.1038/s41563-025-02219-5
Double-network-inspired mechanical metamaterials
Abstract
Mechanical metamaterials can achieve high stiffness and strength at low densities, but often at the expense of low ductility and stretchability-a persistent trade-off in materials. In contrast, double-network hydrogels feature interpenetrating compliant and stiff polymer networks, and exhibit unprecedented combinations of high stiffness and stretchability, resulting in exceptional toughness. Here we present double-network-inspired metamaterials by integrating monolithic truss (stiff) and woven (compliant) components into a metamaterial architecture, which achieves a tenfold increase in stiffness and stretchability compared to its pure counterparts. Nonlinear computational mechanics models elucidate that enhanced energy dissipation in these double-network-inspired metamaterials stems from increased frictional dissipation due to entanglements between networks. Through introduction of internal defects, which typically degrade mechanical properties, we demonstrate a threefold increase in energy dissipation for these metamaterials via failure delocalization. This work opens avenues for developing metamaterials in a high-compliance regime inspired by polymer network topologies.
© 2025. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Limited.
Conflict of interest statement
Competing interests: The authors declare no competing interests.
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