2D to 4D Materials: From Graphene to Shape-Shifters

Materials no longer exist only in three dimensions—or in fixed form. 2D to 4D Materials: From Graphene to Shape-Shifters traces how materials science expands from atom-thin layers to systems that change shape, function, and behavior over time.
This book takes an evolution-of-dimensions approach. It begins with two-dimensional materials like graphene, where thickness disappears but quantum effects dominate. It then moves to three-dimensional architectures and finally to four-dimensional materials—structures designed to transform in response to heat, light, moisture, or force.
Rather than treating these materials as curiosities, the book explains why dimensionality changes everything: strength-to-weight ratios, conductivity, programmability, and adaptability. Time becomes a design axis, not a limitation.
This book explores:
• Why 2D materials behave unlike bulk matter
• How structure across dimensions creates new properties
• What makes materials responsive and adaptive
• Why 4D materials are designed to change, not last
• Where shape-shifting materials create real value
This book is for researchers, designers, and technologists drawn to materials that do more than stay still. If the future of matter is thin, responsive, and dynamic, this book explains how dimensions unlock that future.