The selection of a structural material requires a compromise between strength and ductility. The material properties will then be set by the choice of alloy composition and microstructure during synthesis and processing, although the requirements may change during service life. Materials design strategies that allow for a recoverable tuning of the mechanical properties would thus be desirable, either in response to external control signals or in the form of a spontaneous adaptation, for instance in self-healing. We have designed a material that has a hybrid nanostructure consisting of a strong metal backbone that is interpenetrated by an electrolyte as the second component. By polarizing the internal interface via an applied electric potential, we accomplish fast and repeatable tuning of yield strength, flow stress, and ductility. The concept allows the user to select, for instance, a soft and ductile state for processing and a high-strength state for service as a structural material.

Nanoporous metals prepared by controlled chemical or electrochemical corrosion of alloys can provide prototypical manifestations of bulk nanostructured material. Samples are readily prepared with dimensions at the millimeter or centimeter scale, while at the same time the microstructure is a homogeneous array of interpenetrating solid skeleton phase and pore channels with a characteristic size that can reach down to below 5 nm. The interest in nanoporous metals as functional materials derives from recent observations of unique materials behavior resulting from their extremely small structure size and their open porosity with large volume-specific surface area. As an example, this article discusses the possible use of nanoporous metal for actuation.

Nanoporous Au−Pt alloys with pore- and ligament size down to few nanometers were fabricated by dealloying Ag−Au−Pt. Owing to the small structure size and large specific surface area, the surface stress and its variation give rise to significant stress and strain in the bulk of these materials. In fact, dilatometry experiments find electrochemical actuation with large reversible strain amplitude. The linear strain reaches ∼1.3% and strain energy density is up to 6.0 MJ/m3. The associated stresses may approach the elastic limit of the alloy.

Nanoporous metals prepared by the corrosion of an alloy can take the form of monolithic, millimeter-sized bodies containing approximately 1015 nanoscale ligaments per cubic millimeter. The ligament size can reach down to the very limits of stability of nanoscale objects. The processes by which nanoporous metals are formed have continued to be fascinating, even though their study in relation to surface treatment, metal refinement, and failure mechanisms can be traced back to ancient times. In fact, the prospect of using alloy corrosion as a means of making nanomaterials for fundamental studies and functional applications has led to a revived interest in the process. The quite distinct mechanical properties of nanoporous metals are one of the focus points of this interest, as relevant studies probe the deformation behavior of crystals at the lower end of the size scale. Furthermore, the coupling of bulk stress and strain to the forces acting along the surface of nanoporous metals provide unique opportunities for controlling the mechanical behavior through external variables such as the electrical or chemical potentials.

Nanoporous metals prepared by alloy corrosion may assume the form of monolithic, millimeter-sized bodies containing around 1015 nanoscale ligaments per cubic millimeter. Here, we report on the fabrication and mechanical behavior of macroscopic, crack-free nanoporous gold samples which exhibit excellent ductility in compression tests. Their yield stress is significantly lower than that expected based on scaling laws or on previous nanoindentation experiments. Electron backscatter diffraction imaging reveals a polycrystalline microstructure with grains larger than 10 μm which acquire a subdomain structure during plastic flow, but remain otherwise intact. We highlight the action of lattice dislocations which can travel over distances much larger than the ligament size. This results in a collective deformation of the many ligaments in each grain. Remarkably, the dislocation cores are partly located in the pore channels. The results suggest a critical view of the conversion between indentation hardness and yield stress in previous work.