Design of Miura-Ori Patterns With Acoustic Bandgaps

We study the wave propagation behavior in Miura-ori patterns by using the Bloch-wave analysis framework. Our investigation focuses on acoustic bandgaps that act as stopping bands for wave propagation at certain frequencies in periodic solids or structures. We show that bandgaps can be created in two-dimensional periodic Miura-ori patterns by introducing material inhomogeneity. First, we perform Bloch-wave analysis of homogeneous Miura-ori patterns with finite panel rigidity and find that no bandgaps are present. We then introduce bandgaps by making the pattern non-uniform — by changing the mass and axial rigidity of origami panels of alternating unit cells. We discuss the dependence of the magnitude of the bandgap on the contrast between material properties. We find that higher magnitudes of bandgaps are possible by using higher contrast ratios (mass and stiffness). These observations indicate the potential of origami-based patterns to be useful as acoustic metamaterials for vibration control.