Shape and Shape Changes in Mechanics: The Mechanical and Thermal Gradient Theories

This book provides an innovative description of motion with large deformations and the possibility of defects and dislocations. The theory is based on the stretch and angular matrices of the polar decomposition allowing convex potentials. Third-order gradient theories are required to account for mechanical everyday experiments, for instance assemblies of solid structures with different spatial dimensions. Second-order gradient theories are required for thermal experiments. Using the princip...