12/02/20: Prof. Lee gave an invited talk at Northwestern

Micro-Ballistics: An Emerging Opportunity to Study Extreme Dynamics of Nanomaterials and Nanocomposites

Exceptional mechanical characteristics of carbon-based nanomaterials have become a topic of interest in a field of engineering where disruptive innovation is desired. However, there is very little known about carbon-based nanomaterials’ behaviors under extremely rapid deformation even though these are particularly important for advanced protective materials. Moreover, the collective mechanical properties of an ensemble of these nanomaterials such as nanocomposites are nearly undiscovered at this ultrahigh-strain-rate regime. In this talk, I will present our recent micro-ballistic studies designed to quantify the collective mechanical characteristics of graphene, carbon nanotubes, and graphene-based nanocomposites when deformed at extraordinarily fast speeds comparable to their speed of sound.