Sandia National Labs Academic Programs Collaboration Report

Developing novel structural metamaterials to mitigate harsh environments Nuclear deterrence mission applications must be extremely dependable in the harshest environments. Components must perform whether they undergo extreme vibration, experience significant shock/impact, encounter blistering temperatures and intense radiation, or are subjected to crushing. Conventional materials are produced through heat and pressure and limited by complex, indirect control of fundamental thermodynamic and kinetic processes, and new alloys often take a decade to develop. Because of the agility provided by this LDRD research, new 3D metamaterials can be

CONTRIBUTOR Spotlight

Ben Young received his doctorate from Texas A&M and joined Sandia as a postdoctoral appointee in 2022. “I’ve been able to bring in some expertise from previous projects working with shape memory alloys to improve a new and interesting metasurface technology. Being a bridge in the conversation and having a foot in both worlds highlights the importance of collaboration in research for me.”

The novel interpenetrating lattice metamaterial controls the transmission of thermal, electrical, or mechanical energy through surface interactions between two interwoven constituent sublattices (“A” and “B,” represented in yellow and blue). This patented design, with its unusual but useful properties, is described in an Additive Manufacturing article.

This cathedral-like metamaterial has internal features that rub against each other as a way to naturally absorb shocks and dampen vibration. A Sandia patent now covers the concept of using friction in metamaterials for this purpose.

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Academic Programs