#3DStartup: How AM3L Uses Metal AM for High Performance Porous Architectures

We end this year with a startup coming from the CEA, the French Alternative Energies and Atomic Energy Commission: AM3L. The company is a starup that specializes in porous metamaterials produced by metal 3D printing. Its goal is to use additive manufacturing to produce structures with fully customized, controlled, and verified architectures. For now, it offers two flagship products: shock absorbers and functional filters. The company relies on metal additive manufacturing to precisely control the porosity of each part and thus make use of the controlled voids inside each component. The focus is not on density but on the porous nature of the structure. This allows AM3L to manipulate the internal architecture at the millimetric or sub-millimetric scale and to offer a wide range of functionalities within a single part, such as rigidity, reinforcement, and flexibility. We met with its co-founder and CTO, Timothée Delacroix, to learn more about the startup’s origins, daily operations, and ambitions.

3DN: Could you introduce yourself and explain your connection to additive manufacturing?

I am Timothée Delacroix, co-founder and CTO of AM3L. I hold a doctorate in engineering with a focus on additive manufacturing, and I have been working for almost seven years on laser powder bed fusion, with several patents and scientific publications related to this technology. I discovered metal additive manufacturing at Safran, where I was introduced to the industrial challenges of the process. I then completed my PhD at CEA Paris-Saclay, contributing to the technological maturation of the process and later to the development of 3D architected materials. Together with my associate Hicham Maskrot, co-founder and President of AM3L, we received support from the CEA to build on the expertise of the laboratory he led, structure a startup creation project, and bridge the gap between research, demonstrators, and industrial solutions. Today, with our team, additive manufacturing is our daily tool, and we operate at the intersection of design, material, process, and functional performance: how to adjust a material, its porosity, and its internal architecture to absorb an impact, filter a fluid, or manage heat flow.

CTO Timothée Delacroix (left) with President Hicham Maskrot (right) of AM3L.

3DN: What is AM3L? Why was the company created?

AM3L is a spin-off from CEA Paris-Saclay, founded in 2023, with expertise in porous metamaterials produced by metal 3D printing. We design and manufacture custom-architected metal structures for demanding sectors such as nuclear, defense, transportation, and energy.