Séminaire

Mardi 28 Mars 2023 à 11h00.

New class of synthetic active materials

''Active materials, in which energy is constantly injected at small scales, are ubiquitous in nature. The prime example is cell tissues, present throughout living beings. In the laboratory, however, most of the work on active systems has focused on asemblies of self-propelled particles. The lack of artificial active materials limits both our fundamental understanding of this class of out-of-equilibrium systems and the creation of practical applications such as synthetic tissues. To fill this gap, we propose a new class of synthetic active materials, based on the dynamic interactions of active actuators and an elastic gel. It will enable us to tackle fundamental questions on the dynamics of active actuators in a complex environment, and on the coupling between local actuations and global elastic response in active materials. Long term, we will explore how to use this knowledge to create a new class of composites that combine active response with mechanical robustness.''