Anisotropic dissipation in lattice metamaterials

Plane wave propagation in an elastic lattice material follows regular patterns as dictated by the nature of the lattice symmetry and the mechanical configuration of the unit cell. A unique feature pertains to the loss of elastodynamic isotropy at frequencies where the wavelength is on the order of the lattice spacing or shorter. Anisotropy may also be realized at lower frequencies with the inclusion of local resonators, especially when designed to exhibit directionally non-uniform connectivity and/or cross-sectional geometry. In this paper, we consider free and driven waves within a plate-like lattice−with and without local resonators−and examine the effects of damping on the isofrequency dispersion curves. We also examine, for free waves, the effects of damping on the frequency-dependent anisotropy of dissipation. Furthermore, we investigate the possibility of engineering the dissipation anisotropy by tuning the directional properties of the prescribed damping. The results demonstrate that uniformly applied damping tends to reduce the intensity of anisotropy in the isofrequency dispersion curves. On the other hand, lattice crystals and metamaterials are shown to provide an excellent platform for direction-dependent dissipation engineering which may be realized by simple changes in the spatial distribution of the damping elements.