Auxetics defy common sense, widening when stretched and narrowing when compressed. NIST researchers have now made the process of using them much easier. Such common-sense-defying materials do exist.

If you stretch an elastic band, it becomes thinner - a physical behavior that applies to most "common" materials. Since the 20th century, an opposite behavior has been known in materials research: The ...

A new study by University of Chicago and University of Pennsylvania scientists shows that as materials age, they ‘remember’ prior stresses and external forces, which researchers can then use to create ...

Why auxetic materials offer some unique advantages in sensor fabrication. How additive manufacturing was used with autextic materials to create unique pressure and force sensors. The structure and ...

For example, if you punch a bag full of water (like you would carry for hiking), the water within it will flow away from the point of impact. If the bag were full of an auxetic foam when you punched ...

Such common-sense-defying materials do exist. They’re called auxetics, and they have a raft of unique properties that make them well-suited for sneaker insoles, bomb-resilient buildings, car bumpers ...