Acting Director: Assoc. Prof. Līva Pupure, Ph.D.
6A Kipsalas street 429, Riga
+371 29383101
The scientific research conducted at the Institute is primarily related to multifunctional materials, which, in addition to bearing mechanical loads, can simultaneously perform other essential functions, such as conducting electricity, absorbing or managing temperature, ion intercalation, or other physical/chemical functions. The main advantage of such materials is the potential to significantly reduce the overall weight and volume at the system level. Therefore, these materials have a very high potential for application in aeronautics, automotive, electronics, and other fields. Multifunctional structural materials combine several functions that can interact in various ways. Therefore, new experimental methods are necessary to study their complex behavior.
Within the framework of the laboratory work, the short-term and long-term behavior of such materials under static and dynamic loads is experimentally investigated. The laboratory's competence also includes the development of analytical and numerical models to predict the behavior of these materials under various loading conditions.
The Institute organizes summer schools. In 2022, the summer school "Fracture Structures: Material Stress Resistance" took place. Students participated in lectures, laboratory work, excursions, and physical activities. The Scientific Laboratory of Experimental Mechanics of Materials provided students with practical training on the production, testing, characterization, and finite element modeling of composite materials.