Representation of Material Elements and Geometry of Substructural Interactions

This paper collects some characteristic aspects of the general model-building framework of the mechanics of complex bodies, that are bodies in which the material substructure influences prominently the gross behavior through interactions conjugated with substructural changes. The emphasis in on issues that are foundational in nature: the geometrica description of the material elements, their energetic characterization, the representation of interactions, conditions for the existence of ground states in conservative setting.