Xiaoyu (Rayne) Zheng (Advisor)

Acoustic transducers are essential for object localization and environmental sensing. Conventional transducers rely on piezoelectric crystals, whose acoustic-electric response is fixed by the crystal lattice’s inherent asymmetry and orientation. This results in static coupling behavior, necessitating bulky arrays of rigid elements with complex wiring and high computational demands for directional sensing. Here, we report a fundamentally new class of acoustic-electric coupling that emerges from topology-governed charge transport in 3D micro-architected piezoelectric metamaterials. Unlike...

This work pertains to the multi-objective inverse design of impact-resistant metamaterials under varying strain rates. Impact-resistant materials are desirable in a wide range of applications, such as sports, automobiles, military, and aircraft, to name a few. Existing literature deals with refining these structures by performing quasi-static finite element (FE) simulations and then verifying them experimentally, which is a time-consuming and expensive process. Moreover, beyond the low-velocity regime, quasi-static simulations are not representative of real-world dynamic...

Engineered composites with fiber orientation in a complete three-dimensional (3D) context are highly desired for maximizing structural performance as they mimic the well-organized fiber arrangement in natural composites. However, most fabrication techniques lack the capability for through-plane (z-axis) alignment, limiting the possibility for structural design and performance optimization. In this study, we present an embedded 3D printing approach that enables complete 3D fiber alignment, including region-specific alignment control along the through-plane direction. Our method utilizes the...