Julia R. Greer - Size Matters: The Importance of Building Small Things

Structural materials are usually either strong and heavy or weak and lightweight. For centuries, societies have had to rely on this historical coupling of strength and density, and use large amounts of heavy materials to make bridges, buildings, and vehicles.

In this lecture, Greer will describe how a biology-inspired approach to engineering has helped create new lightweight yet extremely strong and damage-tolerant materials. She will outline how her group has been creating materials that contain more than 98 percent air, yet possess strengths similar to those of metals. In the process, Greer will explain how she uses nanometer-sized materials with specific atomic arrangements to set us free from the strength-density coupling.

Julia R. Greer is professor of materials science and mechanics at Caltech.

Presented by: Caltech Committee on Institute Programs