A piezo-metastructure with bistable circuit shunts for adaptive nonreciprocal wave transmission

Abstract

In this paper, we present a piezo-metastructure shunted with bistable circuits to achieve adaptive nonreciprocal elastic wave transmission. Static properties of the bistable circuit are first investigated, followed by numerical investigation of wave transmission characteristics on the nonlinear piezo-metastructure. Both the local-resonance bandgap and the bandgap transmission phenomenon, also known as supratransmission, are explored and investigated. By introducing circuit asymmetry, the supratransmission thresholds, critical excitation amplitudes to enable bandgap transmission, are found at different levels for the different wave transmission directions and hence creating an excitation amplitude range within which nonreciprocal wave transmission can be facilitated. Effect of the asymmetry factor on nonreciprocity properties is subsequently analyzed and the trade-offs between the forward transmission amplitude and the range of excitation with nonreciprocity are identified. Additionally, it is demonstrated that wave transmission characteristics of the proposed nonlinear piezo-metastructure can be adaptively tuned by conveniently adjusting stable equilibria of the bistable circuit. Lastly, the observed wave transmission properties are further corroborated by experimental investigations. Overall, the results illustrate a novel means to manipulate unidirectional elastic wave transmission using a nonlinear piezo-metastructure.

Broadband Frequency and Spatial On-Demand Tailoring of Topological Wave Propagation Harnessing Piezoelectric Metamaterials

“…The substrate layer has thickness h s , density ρ s , elastic modulus E s , and Poisson's ratio ] s while the piezoelectric layers have thickness h p and density ρ p . The piezoelectric elements are connected to external circuitry through conductive circular electrodes (red and blue in Figure 1) with radius r p and a thickness that is assumed to be negligible (Zheng et al, 2019). The electrodes are arranged in a honeycomb lattice formation that contains the symmetries required to achieve the elastic analog of the QVHE.…”

Universally bistable shells with nonzero Gaussian curvature for two-way transition waves

“…Multistable structures comprising arrays of interconnected bistable elements have recently emerged as a powerful platform to manipulate and control the propagation of mechanical signals, owing to their ability to support the propagation of transition waves-nonlinear waves similar to those of falling dominoes that sequentially switch all elements 15 . Such transition waves have been recently exploited to enable unidirectional propagation [16][17][18] , achieve complex shape reconfigurations 19 and realize structures that can be quickly deployed 20 , as well as mechanical logic gates 21 . However, almost all previous studies have focused on bistable elements that possess two energy minima of different height [16][17][18][19][20][21] and, therefore, support unidirectional wave propagation.…”

“…Such transition waves have been recently exploited to enable unidirectional propagation [16][17][18] , achieve complex shape reconfigurations 19 and realize structures that can be quickly deployed 20 , as well as mechanical logic gates 21 . However, almost all previous studies have focused on bistable elements that possess two energy minima of different height [16][17][18][19][20][21] and, therefore, support unidirectional wave propagation. By contrast, the advantages and challenges associated with the propagation of transition waves in systems whose constituents possess equal energy minima have received very limited attention 22 .…”

Harnessing transition waves to realize deployable structures

“…If such energy is transmitted to the neighboring elements through (elastic) connections, waves similar to those of a falling dominoes (11) are initiated that switch sequentially all building blocks. It has been recently shown that such transition waves offer new opportunities to manipulate the propagation of mechanical signals and enable unidirectional propagation (8,12,13) and energy harvesting (14,15) as well as simple mechanical logic (9); here, we will investigate their use to realize foldable structures that can be quickly deployed and automatically lock in place.…”