The Material Plot feature enables you to plot the materials of your model as contours using geometry or Named Selection scoping. The supported geometric entities include Body, Face, Edge, and Element. Once you specify your geometry selections, right-click the object and select Generate Material Plot. The Geometry window displays contours on your model that correspond to the material (properties) of the specified geometry/geometries/named selections. An example is illustrated below that includes Isotropic Elasticity, Young's Modulus, and the unit of measure.

You insert this object from either the Materials Context tab, or by right-clicking the Materials object and selecting Insert > Material Plot.

See the Material Plot object reference page for a description of the object's properties.

Temperature Dependent Properties

If a material property depends on temperature, then the values are calculated at the reference temperature of the body. If the reference temperature of the body is set per environment, then a default value of 22 °C is chosen.

Properties Dependent on Field Variables

Material properties can be dependent on user-defined field variables. User-defined Field Variables are either imported through Imported Material Field objects or a single default value is defined in the Engineering Data Workspace. As such, your material property values are calculated based on the definition of one of these user-defined field variables. Field Variable interpolation algorithms (Algorithm Type) can be modified in the Engineering Data Workspace and the change is reflected in your contour plot.