Roadmap on mechanical metamaterials
- 1 October 2026
- journal article
- Published by IOP Publishing in Smart Materials and Structures
- Vol. 35 (10) , 103501
Abstract
This Roadmap covers the status, current challenges, and new science required to address these challenges, for mechanical metamaterials. This is timely, given the sustained increase in mechanical metamaterials research outputs and patents. Sections are grouped according to anomalous properties. These include auxetic (negative Poisson’s ratio), sub-divided into geometric form, flexible and shape morphing, negative thermal expansion, and negative stiffness. Specific sections also cover naturally and biologically inspired metamaterials (characterised by complex multiscale material architectures), nanoscale/molecular metamaterials, and applications of mechanical metamaterials. Key challenges raised throughout relate to scaling up manufacturing for reliable, cost-effective production, particularly for high resolution processes nearing the molecular level, and efficiency of modelling approaches required for these multiscale systems. With opportunities to target their new, useful functionalities, such as the extreme hardness of auxetic materials, or extreme vibration damping via negative stiffness, mechanical metamaterials are contributing to rapid evolution of manufacturing and multiscale modelling.Keywords
Funding Information
- Australian Research Council (DP190103260)
- Malta Council for Science and Technology (IPAS-2023-051)
- Hong Kong Polytechnic University (P0039471)
- European Research Council (ERC-2020-AdG 101020715 NEUROMETA)
- Polish Ministry of Science - Regional Excellence Initiative (RID/SP/0050/2024/1)
- Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EP/V002198/1)
- Narodowe Centrum Nauki (2017/27/B/ST3/02955)
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