The development of multifunctional and biocompatible microrobots for biomedical
applications relies on achieving controllable locomotion. Here we describe the conditions …

We study both experimentally and numerically the aeroelastic response of a pre-stressed
curved aileron in a high Reynolds number flow undisturbed at infinity. The structure is …

We propose a derivation of a damage model in slender structures, focusing on the particular
case of a rod. The peculiarity of the model is that it takes into account the changes in rigidity …

Thin elastic shells are almost inextensible but easy to bend. In the presence of prestresses,
geometric frustrations can produce complex elastic energetic landscapes, which have been …

Mathematical modeling and quantitative study of biological motility is producing new
biophysical insight and opportunities for discoveries at the level of both fundamental science …

We review ideas emerged in the mechanics literature in the last fifty years concerning the
problem of controlling shape. The central notion is the multiplicative decomposition of the …

Freely suspended thin sheets are ubiquitously observed in the synthesis and processing
stages of thin-structured materials. Examples include the solution-based synthesis of …

The interaction of a viscous fluid and a circular, pre-stressed active shell is studied in the
limit of low Reynolds numbers. A seminal paper of Taylor represents a benchmark for this …

In this thesis some fluid-structure interaction problems related to swimming are investigated.
The broad domain in which the cases can be classified is that of swimming at low-Reynolds …

External manipulation of soft matter underlies a multitude of advancements in far-from-
equilibrium materials. The application of magnetic fields has proven tremendouslybeneficial …