Algorithmic lattice kirigami: A route to pluripotent materials.

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Mechanical Engineering
• Computational Design

Background:

• Kirigami, the Japanese art of paper cutting, offers a unique approach to transforming flat materials into complex three-dimensional structures.
• Traditional kirigami design often relies on empirical methods or predefined patterns.
• Developing systematic and programmable methods for kirigami-based shape transformation is an ongoing challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To demonstrate an inverse design paradigm for kirigami structures.
• To enable the folding of flat surfaces into complex target configurations using kirigami.
• To develop a generalizable method for programming diverse 3D shapes from a single kirigami cut pattern.

Main Methods:

• Utilizing a regular arrangement of kirigami elements.
• Employing arrays of disclination defect pairs on a lattice structure.
• Developing a pluripotent lattice of kirigami cuts on a flat sheet.

Main Results:

• A scheme using disclination defect pairs was presented to design a target stepped surface.
• A more general method was developed using a fixed lattice of kirigami cuts.
• This single lattice of cuts allows programming a wide variety of target surfaces by varying folding directions.

Conclusions:

• The inverse design paradigm effectively controls the folding of flat surfaces into complex 3D shapes using kirigami.
• The pluripotent lattice of cuts offers a versatile platform for programmable surface transformations.
• This approach has potential applications in deployable structures, robotics, and adaptive materials.