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Researchers at Aalto University are developing lightweight materials whose behaviour comes from geometry rather than the material itself. These metamaterials are built from repeating geometric units that can be programmed to deform in specific ways. 

When pressed, the structures do not simply collapse. Instead, they twist, compress, or smoothly shift from one deformation mechanism to another. Their geometry enables them to support loads far exceeding their own weight. 

Because the response comes from shape, the same concept can be applied to plastics, wood, metals, or other materials and scaled from small samples to larger structures, for example in the construction, or sensors and actuators. 

‘We want to show how geometry can make structures lighter, more stable, and more adaptable,’ says doctoral researcher Mohammaderfan Khodabakhshi.