Researchers Create Polycatenated Architected Materials (PAMs) for 3D Printing

Recent advances in materials science have led to new solutions in architecture and design. In a recent example, a team of researchers in California has developed polycatenated architectural materials (PAMs), which are capable of interweaving to form unique 3D structures. These materials can be used as wireframe elements to create 3D structures with interesting properties in a number of different sectors, including engineering and design.

To be precise, this new type of material was developed by a team of engineers from the California Institute of Technology (Caltech), in collaboration with Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory and Princeton University. Neither granular nor crystalline, it can be either fluid or solid depending on the stress that is applied to it. Made with 3D printing, these structures offer a new way of rethinking traditional designs and creating objects with surprising physical properties.

PAM Materials Are Suitable for Many Applications and Sectors

PAMs are materials with a unique structure, similar to chain links, but used in an original way. Their design stems from research into how different elements can be linked together to form complex structures. In a study published in Science, the researchers detail not only how these materials are made, but also the interesting properties they observed during their tests.