The toughness of interlocking metasurfaces

Abstract

Interlocking metasurfaces (ILMs) are arrays of autogenous latching unit cells patterned across a surface. These create structural joints similar to bio‐inspired suture joints but patterned over a 2D surface rather than a 1D seam. This enables ILMs to be an alternative to conventional joining technologies such as bolts, welds, and adhesives. However, compared to conventional joining methods, relatively little is known of the engineering considerations for designing structural ILMs. In this study, the interfacial toughness of an archetypal ILM was examined for the first time. Under the conditions studied here, the ILM was substantially tougher than the material from which it was made; in this case exhibiting up to a 50% increase in interfacial crack initiation energy over the solid base material, a photocured 3D printed polymer. Through experimental tests using in‐situ digital image correlation along with complementary computational analyses, the mechanism of toughening in the ILM structure and the origins of toughness anisotropy were revealed. The increase in toughness is associated with cross‐cell interactions, i.e. load‐sharing across unit cells, which gives rise to a finite process zone length with different effective material properties. In this way, ILM toughening is analogous to crack blunting in ductile materials or fiber bridging in composites; yet here, the ILM was composed of a single‐phase base material and so the architected toughening is geometric in nature and hence amenable to future topological optimization.This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.