The aim of our research is to understand the diverse behavior of flexible structures and materials with micro-architectures, and to propose new designs by exploiting novel material and geometric characteristics.  Our research is particularly focused on deployable structures, adaptive and thin-ply composite materials, polymer thin films, and porous ceramics. Through a combination of computational modeling, experimental characterization, and device fabrication, we seek to explain the underlying mechanics and realize new structures and materials with multiple functionalities.