Sound absorption characteristic of micro-helix metamaterial by 3D printing

We present the design of micro-helix metamaterial supporting high sound absorption characteristic by 3D printing. The sample structure which is fabricated out of polylactide (PLA) material, many micro-helix are arranged by periodic arrays on XY plane. Experiment measurement results show that different geometrical dimensions of helix vestibule and cavity depth have a great effect on sound absorption coefficient. Physical mechanism depends on the friction and viscosity between the air and the helix vestibule. This work shows great potential of micro-structure metamaterial in noise control applications require light weight and large rigid of sound absorption. (C) 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd on behalf of The Chinese Society of Theoretical and Applied Mechanics.