Conference EMMC20
S7: Mechanics of soft materials and structures
Massimiliano Gei, University of Trieste, Italy, email
Giovanni Noselli, SISSA, Trieste, Italy, email
Francesco Dal Corso, Univ. of Trento, Italy, email
Symposium description
Soft materials and structures are reshaping science and technology, driving innovations in biomedicine, soft robotics, programmable structures, and energy harvesting. With their unique capabilities—remarkable flexibility, the ability to achieve large deformations under minimal loads, and the potential for custom design through advanced fabrication—they are the building blocks of next-generation devices. Beyond their purely mechanical features, certain soft materials can also respond to multifield stimuli — such as dielectric and magneto-sensitive elastomers, electroactive polymers and hydrogels, and liquid crystal elastomers — thereby broadening their potential applications. Although each application possesses its own characteristic, the experimental, theoretical, and numerical methodologies to tackle research challenges in the area of soft materials and compliant systems are based on a common ground. This symposium will bring together researchers with shared interests in the theoretical, computational, and experimental mechanics of soft materials and structures, with the goal of sharing the latest research outcomes in the field.