Our group is interested in harnessing insights from living systems to guide the development of materials and structures with autonomously adaptive behaviors such as functional morphogenesis, self-healing, and mechanoresponsive strengthening. We believe that the prerequisite mechanisms enabling these functions are:​
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Reversible, "dynamic bonds" that drive network restructuring.
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Incorporation of "active" constituents" that convert stored energy into mechanical work.
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Organization of the constituents into structured architectures that coordinate emergent responses.
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Our aim is to leverage expertise in mechanical design, soft matter/network mechanics, and multiscale computational mechanics to predictively design and fabricate mechanoresponsive materials that incorporate such traits.
We aim to unveil how emergent properties and spontaneous functions of dynamic and active materials are mediated by the composition, arrangement, and interactions of their underlying constituents. Specifically, I utilize a combination of experimentation, computa-tional mechanics, and constitutive theory to:
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observe existing, complex materials and systems with functional behaviors;
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develop and validate physically motivated computational models that bridge local-to-global properties based on the postulated first-order physical effects within the systems;
- and utilize my models to:
- reveal how modulating constituent-scale properties mediates emergent mechanics,
- and guide the predictive design of mechanically adaptive materials.
Wagner, R. J., Lamont, S.C., White, Z.T., Vernerey, F.J. Catch bond kinetics are instrumental to cohesion of fire ant rafts under load. PNAS (2024). Link
Wagner, R. J., Dai, J., Su, X., Vernerey, F. J. A mesoscale model for the micromechanical study of gels. Journal of the Mechanics and Physics of Solids (2022). Link
Wagner, R. J., Such, K., Hobbs, E. & Vernerey, F. J. Treadmilling and dynamic protrusions in fire ant rafts. Journal of The Royal Society Interface (2021). Link
Whether it's about the mechanics of viscoelastic solids or the mechanics of a good weight lift, watching things 'click' for my students is one of my biggest joys in life. That's why I teach at every opportunity I get. Where there are none, I try to make new ones that build up my community.
Teaching 3rd grade students about viscoelasticity and shear-thickening fluids at Dryden Elementry School.