A multiphysics model for magneto-electro-elastic laminates

•Single-layer smart plate model achieving greater accuracy with FOSDT efficiency.•Prediction of multiphysics behavior of smart plates depends on load and boundaries.•A model accurately predicting most fields might fail for some components.•A systematic and complete verification is needed to verify a 2D multiphysics model.

An efficient, geometrically nonlinear, multiphysics plate model for analyzing magneto-electro-elastic composite laminates is rigorously developed by applying the variational asymptotic method. By taking advantage of the inherent small parameter characterized by the ratio of the thickness to the in-plane deformation of the plate, we systematically reduced the original multiphysically coupled three-dimensional model to a series of two-dimensional plate models. A companion one-dimensional through-the-thickness analysis provides necessary constitutive models for the plate analysis. For practical uses, we also fit the asymptotically correct second-order electromagnetic enthalpy into a generalized Reissner–Mindlin model. Three-dimensional multiphysical components such as displacement/strain/stress fields as well as the electric/magnetic potentials and fluxes are obtained through a recovery process. Results for sample problems featuring electromagnetic and elastic coupling as well as characteristically different load/boundary conditions and material configurations are compared with exact solutions to systematically investigate the prediction capability of the present model.