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Solid Mechanics Lab
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The lab uses experiments to reveal how materials fail in the nanoscale world.
AboutAbout the lab
Mechanics of materials in the microscopic world.
The lab studies how materials deform and fail at the nano- and micrometer scale.
At these dimensions, materials deform and fracture differently from the materials we see in everyday life.
Because the mechanisms and the laws governing them are not yet understood, the lab develops its own experimental methods to investigate them.
What distinguishes the lab is that it examines materials from both mechanics, which governs deformation and fracture, and physical properties, which give rise to functions.
Key terms
- Two-dimensional materials
- Sheet-like materials only a few atomic layers thick
- Converse flexoelectric effect
- A phenomenon in which a material develops strain under a gradient of the electric field
- Creep
- Deformation that gradually progresses over time when a constant force is applied continuously
NewsLab news
A master's student's work was published in Scripta Materialia
A paper by Prof. Hirakata was published in Advanced Materials Technologies
An alumnus's work was published in Journal of the European Ceramic Society
An undergraduate student received a Best Presentation Award at the FY2025 Kansai Student Chapter Graduation Research Presentation Conference for Student Members
A master's student received a Best Presentation Award at JSMAMS 2025
ResearchResearch themes
Targeting nano- and micromaterials, the lab studies both the mechanics that govern deformation and fracture and the physical properties that give rise to functions. Using precise experimental techniques it has developed itself, the lab observes with high accuracy minute deformation and fracture processes that are difficult to measure with conventional techniques.
*Illustrative imageChanging Material Strength with Electrons
When electrons or light are applied to a material and extra electrons are injected, its properties can change significantly. From this phenomenon, the lab aims to reveal the mechanism that fundamentally determines material strength, and to develop materials that do not break.
*Illustrative imageMaterials Made of Stacked Atomic Layers
Atomic-layer stacked structures, in which two-dimensional materials are tightly stacked, resist fracture even when bent substantially. The lab is investigating where this long-lasting resistance to fracture comes from.
*Illustrative imageFoundations for Flexible Electronic Devices
The lab applied an AC voltage to multilayer MoS2 and imaged how it deforms in synchronization with the electric field. Deformation appears even though there is no piezoelectricity in the stacking direction, and the lab considers it to be a converse flexoelectric effect caused by the gradient of the electric field.
*Illustrative imageFracture of Nanoscale Thin Films and Structures
The mechanical behavior of nanometer-scale thin films and tiny structures changes as their dimensions shrink. The lab investigates the mechanisms in detail, from crack propagation to fatigue and creep.
MembersFaculty
The members of the Solid Mechanics Lab consist of faculty members, cooperating faculty members, a secretary, and doctoral, master's, and undergraduate students.As of 2026
- ProfessorHiroyuki Hirakata
- Assistant ProfessorWataru Matsunaga
VoicesStudent voices
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Report an errorAbout the images
The top and research theme images are illustrative and were not taken at the lab. They are cropped from Wikimedia Commons images. Cropped CC BY-SA images are provided under the same CC BY-SA license as the original (version shown on each line).
- Top image: “Transmission electron microscope (Morgagni 268D) 2pl” Pleple2000 / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Changing Material Strength with Electrons: “Interaction of the electron beam with the sample” Vicente Neto / CC BY 4.0 (cropped)
- Materials Made of Stacked Atomic Layers: “Graphene-3D-balls” Jynto (talk) / CC0 (cropped)
- Foundations for Flexible Electronic Devices: “ZrCl2 one layer” Ben Mills / Public domain (cropped)
- Fracture of Nanoscale Thin Films and Structures: “Thin film surface growth defect” Evavilova / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (エネルギー材料設計): “Typical reversed fatigue stress cycles” Yapparina / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (ナノ・マイクロシステム工学): “A MicroVision MEMS mirror” S2upidOnReddit / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (バイオメカニクス): “Expérimentation sur l'influence des courbures rachidiennes hautes sur la biomécanique du membre supérieur, en lien avec le risque de troubles musculosquelettiques” Sophie Jeannin / CC BY-SA 4.0 (cropped)
- Related lab (機械機能要素工学): “Ball-bearing-numbered” Niabot / CC BY-SA 3.0 (cropped)
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