Application of kirigami-based metamaterials for interfacial effects

Application of kirigami-based metamaterials for interfacial effects (Prof. Animangshu Ghatak, Chemical)

Kirigami, is a Japanesse art, that involves introducing strategic cuts into a thin two-dimensional sheet to transform it into stretchable, three-dimensional, auxetic structures upon mechanical loading. Such kirigami-inspired designs have enabled lightweight, strong structures, tunable optical materials, enhanced heat transfer systems, and robotic skins. However, their integration with surface and interfacial phenomena remains largely unexplored. Existing studies, on this field primarily exploit mechanical flexibility rather than modifying interfacial behaviour itself. Integrating kirigami with soft-matter interfacial effects—such as wetting, elastocapillarity, surface instabilities, and nucleation—offers opportunities to dynamically control liquid motion, adhesion, heat and mass transfer. Addressing this gap motivates the proposed research.