AlbaNova and Nordita colloquium

Natural Tilings: Between a Hard Rock and a Soft Cell  

Prof. Alain Goriely (Mathematical Institute, Oxford)

30 April 2026, 15:15 - The Oskar Klein auditorium (FR4)

Mosaic patterns and tilings are ubiquitous in nature, appearing in systems ranging from cellular tissues and geological formations to biological shells and foams. Traditionally, these structures have been modeled using polyhedral tilings composed of flat faces, straight edges, and sharp corners. However, careful observation reveals that many natural tilings deviate significantly from this paradigm: their boundaries are curved with smooth interfaces. This realisation has motivated the introduction of a new class of shapes known as soft cells, which arise as smooth deformations of standard tilings. Such cells are found in the geometry of metal and liquid foam as well as in many micro-structures modelled by triply periodic minimal surfaces. In this talk, I will explain the mathematics and physics of tilings, hard and soft, describe their construction and classification, and illustrate how they provide a more accurate geometric description of patterns found in biology, architecture, engineering, in the deepest sea and even in space.