Project Description
Geometrical shape is a central aspect of function in materials science, engineering and biology. Examples include the shape of waveguides or invisibility cloaks as metamaterial, the shape of airplane wings, ship hulls or acoustic horns in engineering, and the shape of biological cells guided by structured environments.
In this project, located in the priority area Method development and design of complex structures and systems of Heidelberg University’s Field of Focus 2, we are going to establish a computational framework for shape optimization that is tailored to the needs of Heidelberg experimentalists in materials science and biology. To this end, we will build on recent advances in algorithmic differentiation and open-source finite element software. Our two main applications, in which we already have performed preliminary work, will be focused ion beam (FIB) milling, where one removes excess material from a frozen cell to carve out a thin lamella for cryo-electron tomography, and 3D direct laser writing of microstructures from nematic elastomers, which can be actuated by temperature changes.
