Flexural Waves in Inhomogeneous Periodic Structures and Localized Vibration Modes

Our project aims to develop methods for and explore applications of the interaction between bending waves and periodic systems of defects (such as voids and inclusions in elastic plates). The emphasis is on flexural phononic band gap systems, where the goal is to create band gaps for flexural modes in plates, and use them to control the propagation of bending waves. The governing equations are involving the biharmonic operator. We will study wave localization due to resonant defects in arrays and in stacked gratings, and address the issue of the design of waveguides and filters for bending waves.