James Gibert
Purdue University, IN·Engineering·Early-career
Imagine a material whose ability to soak up vibrations or shocks could be adjusted after it is built, as conditions change. Such programmable materials could protect sensitive equipment, monitor structures and make smarter packaging.
- Fields
Engineering
Materials Science
Mathematics & Statistics
- Topics
mechanical metamaterials
programmable materials
vibration suppression
- Grants
- 1 known grant, through Jan 2027
What they work on
- Establish a mathematical framework, using dynamical systems theory with analytical and numerical modeling, for how topology interacts with nonlinear, time-dependent behavior in heterogeneous mechanical metamaterials.
- Program the stiffness and inertial behavior of a single elastomeric host structure by selectively placing or removing inserts called digital elements, and measure the resulting vibration responses.
- Test whether composites of viscoelastic and elastic or hyperelastic materials give host structures tailored strain-dependent responses, using material characterization and experimental testing.
- Apply the framework to develop mechanical metamaterials with self-sensing capabilities for vibration suppression and shock absorption.
More about the research
Today, vibration-damping parts often have to be replaced as they age or as temperatures shift. Engineers also lack systematic theories for designing mechanical metamaterials, structures whose behavior comes from their architecture rather than just their ingredients.
Why it matters
Programmable metamaterials could let engineers tune shock absorption and vibration suppression in place as systems age or temperatures change, reducing the cost of replacing vibration-reduction equipment. Self-sensing versions could improve infrastructure monitoring and enable smart packaging that tracks the shocks a product experiences.
Known grants
From NIH and NSF research grants. Labs often have other funding we can't see.
Closest labs
Ed Habtour
University of Washington, WA·Engineering·Early-career
Develop dynamics models that predict how irregular segmented structures, modeled on diving seabird necks and stingray wings, guide waves through them by varying local rigidity, interfaces and pattern connectivity.
Ankit Saxena
University of Wyoming, WY·Engineering
Develop a topology optimization algorithm based on Sequential Linear Programming to systematically design resonant particle dampers despite their nonlinear and random particle interactions.
Md Raf E Ul Shougat
Kennesaw State University, GA·Engineering
Develop adaptive mechanisms that tune nonlinear oscillators to stay near critical transitions between motion patterns. Use modeling, stability analysis and numerical continuation to find how this affects sensitivity, memory and robustness.
The school
Purdue University: 43 labs on PI Pages, $932M a year on research, 833 research doctorates a year.
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