Smart Composite Materials: An Introduction

Interest in smart (intelligent or responsive) materials, and of composite materials in particular, has been steadily increasing over the past decade. The fact that one or more properties of a multimaterial can be changed in a controlled manner by means of external stimuli is undoubtedly appealing in sensing and actuation fields. Smart composite materials can be engineered (and applied) into different length scales, ranging from large structural components to miniaturized devices as those currently deployed in the area of wearable technology. The chapters included in this section aim to grasp the topic of smart composite materials from different viewpoints, namely, synthesis pathways towards smart composites, main sorts of materials combined into a single structure or device, and application fields depending on the stimuli they react to. In addition, associated challenges and prospects for each type of smart composite material are highlighted.