Current challenges in the fabrication of bio-inspired composites
Biological composites achieve remarkable mechanical properties by organizing organic and inorganic building blocks into complex reinforcing architectures that find no counterparts in man-made materials. Combining the design principles underlying such intricate microstructures with the rich chemistry available in synthetic systems may offer interesting solutions for the manufacturing of sustainable and high-performance synthetic systems. In this talk, we will revisit the recent progress in the development of magnetically-assisted assembly techniques for the fabrication of bio-inspired materials and discuss the current challenges for the next major steps towards the next generation of multifunctional and high-performance composites.