On the complexity and analysis of auxetic systems

A challenge in creating a model for an auxetic system based on a formalism that is fully computable, is the aim of this paper. Two major levels of complexity are discussed in a way of understanding the structure and processes that define an auxetic system. The auxeticity and structural complexity are interpreted in the light of Cosserat elasticity which admits degrees of freedom not present in classical elasticity, i.e. the rotation of points in the material, and a couple per unit area or the couple stress. The Young'modulus computing for a laminated periodic system made up of alternating aluminum and an auxetic material is an example of computing complexity. (© 2008 WILEY-VCH Verlag GmbH & Co. KGaA, Weinheim)