Prof. Glaucio H. Paulino and research group member Dr. Xiangxin Dang, along with collaborator Prof. Stefano Gonella from the University of Minnesota, put forth a paradigm-shifting strategy---folded kirigami---to realize kirigami structures that rely exclusively on a sequence of folding operations applied to a single surface with prescribed creases and cuts. The "folded kirigami” features geometric accuracy, mechanical reliability, and superior tunability in a variety of emerging metamaterial functionalities. These include topological phase-switching reconfigurability between polarized and nonpolarized states in kagome kirigami and availability of nonreciprocal mechanical response in square-rhombus kirigami. This work may open a path for achieving mechanical metamaterials through the potential of surface cutting and folding, bypassing the conventional requirements of additive or subtractive manufacturing.

The work was published in PNAS on November 8, 2024.

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Movie 1: Deployment of regular kagome “folded kirigami”.	Movie 2: Crease-slit patterns for kagome “folded kirigami”.	Movie 3: Deployment of rotating-square “folded kirigami”.	Movie 4: Compression tests of polarized and non-polarized kagome “folded kirigami”.	Movie 5: Mechanical testing of non-reciprocal square-rhombus “folded kirigami”.