Focused Elastodynamic Morphing for deployment of Metamaterial Spaceborne Antennas and Lattice Structures for Aerospace Applications

The goal is to strengthen the research infrastructure in Vermont by researching a novel and potentially highly reliable method of deploying and controlling the shape of space structures and antennas, exploiting these shape changes to enhance the performance of antennas, and to combine deployment and structural control techniques to create feasible designs for large km-scale space structures and sensing systems. The deployment technique uses an innovative elastodynamic method that focuses and localizes elastodynamic energy to expand individual truss elements in a sequential manner. The method uses frangible flexure and elastic snap joints that release and expand the structure when elastic waves focus on an individual cell. This technique potentially avoids many of the sticking and jamming problems associated with conventional mechanical linkage deployment. Elastodynamic focusing exploits the periodic nature of compressed and deployed truss structures to create elastic metamaterials with robust wave propagation and robust topologically protected asymmetry. Focused vibration also replaces the heavy electro-mechanical actuation systems of conventional truss deployment with lighter vibratory systems that exert remote actuation. Furthermore, the initially folded truss structure may be more resilient to the highly dynamic conditions of launch and require significantly less supporting hardware. The same set of metamaterial elastodynamic techniques enables controlling shape of deployed antennas in dynamic manners that make for innovative electromagnetic sensing methods. Possible electromagnetic metamaterial antenna applications include small aperture antennas; antennas capable of sending and receiving structured beams, such as dichroic chirality, orbital angular momentum, self-healing Bessel beams, and accelerating Airy beams; and antennas built from arrays of active elements, such as metamaterial circulators. Combining these deployment and structural control techniques opens the door for creating large km-scale scale structures, antennas and scientific instruments – a topic of high interest to future NASA plans. The research plan includes mathematical simulations of focused deployment, proof-of-concept experiments with 1D and then 2D structures, morphing antennas, and conceptual designs and simulations of km-scale space structures. Uncertainty of the results will be quantified with repeated experiments and sensitivity analysis. The potential impact of this research for NASA can be substantial with the implementation of improved and more reliable methods of deploying and controlling large space structures, antennas and enabling km-scale sensing systems. We plan to collaborate with NASA Ames on structures, and NASA Goddard on antennas to receive technical guidance and advice on NASA relevance. This research will build on existing research infrastructure in Vermont in dynamics, electromagnetics, metamaterials, and structures. The project will raise the research infrastructure within Vermont on space structures and metamaterials to a higher level by involving senior and junior faculty members, and three graduate students in a collaborative multidisciplinary project of significant relevance to the NASA and other operators of systems in space. The acquisition of test equipment will enable the development of sophisticated test apparatus and procedures that will be of relevance in future research efforts. The project will have a direct impact on economic development in Vermont with the education of highly trained engineers at the graduate level and the potential for creation of intellectual property with benefit to the space industry.

This is a mature technology (TRL 7+) — the realistic path in is usually NASA's Technology Transfer Program: licensing an existing NASA patent, or a Space Act Agreement to use NASA facilities/expertise directly. NASA also runs a startup licensing program with no upfront fee for companies formed to commercialize a specific NASA technology.

None of these are guaranteed paths for this specific project — TechPort itself doesn't have an "apply" button. Reaching out to the contact(s) above with a specific question is usually the fastest way to find out what's actually open.