The aircraft structure serves as a foundational framework supporting the overall design of an aircraft. It integrates critical components such as flight controls, hydraulics, and propulsion systems while maintaining structural integrity to withstand diverse aerodynamic forces. This stream emphasizes a comprehensive understanding of the mechanics and physics of structures and solids, with a primary focus on the design, analysis, manufacturing, and operation.

At the core of this stream is the pursuit of understanding materials and structures that contribute to the creation of lightweight, multifunctional, and adaptable structures capable of withstanding extreme environments. This involves understanding the mechanisms operating across various length- and time-scales within structures and materials to achieve the desired effective properties. The stream adopts a comprehensive approach, integrating theory, computational models, and experiments. This holistic strategy enables us to rigorously analyze material properties, engineer tunable and robust structures, assess structural stability, and conduct health and life-cycle analyses.

Training in this stream opens wide-ranging opportunities for the future. The acquired skill set serves as a solid foundation, enabling entry into diverse domains such as the aerospace industry, academic research, and deep-tech entrepreneurship. The versatility of the curriculum equips one for a dynamic career ahead.

The Structures and Materials group within our department has a distinguished history of contributing significantly to the growth and evolution of aerospace activities in the country. Our journey commenced in the 1970s, marked by groundbreaking research in composite structures that provided crucial support to national programs such as the Advanced Light Helicopter (ALH), Light Combat Aircraft (LCA), and HANSA-Light Trainer. The group played a pivotal role in overseeing the use of composites in the LCA, highlighting a key benefit of using carbon fiber composites. While traditional materials such as aluminium or steel offer uniform strength and stiffness in all directions, fiber-reinforced composites allow for superior strength and stiffness in specific desired directions. This achievement is made possible through carefully calculated layering and fiber-orientation techniques, resulting in a reduction in weight. This, in turn, positively impacts both fuel efficiency and overall aircraft performance.

Moreover, our department has been at the forefront of advancements in Non-Destructive Testing methods, particularly in the realms of structural health monitoring and integrity evaluation. These methods have found extensive applications, including the evaluation of composite materials used in the LCA, integrity assessment of titanium propellant tanks for Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) applications, and the detection of leaks in fuel tanks and various components in defence aircraft for Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO).