This dissertation would not have been possible without Dr. Seah Leong Keey and Dr. Chai Gin Boay, who not only supervised but also encouraged and challenged me through my years at NTU. I am sure I am not even aware of all that I owe to them. I also thank Dr. I. Sridhar for his interest in my work. In addition, I want to acknowledge the generous scholarship received from Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), and I thank NTU for permission to use its computing and laboratory facilities. My appreciation also goes to Ms. Chia, Mr. Wong, and Thomas from Strength of Materials Lab, as well as Mr. Teo, Justin, and Chesda from CANES lab, who were always friendly and helpful. I am grateful to Ms. Peh Yin Chee and the numerous FYP students, who had helped to carry out some of the tests. Equally important is the help and support from many colleagues: Lam, Jonathan, Norman, Elson, Nianfeng, Shashi, Kapil, and Shantanu. I am indebted to my family who encouraged me to pursue my dreams and helped me get the best education. Lastly, I thank Bernice for being such a wonderful companion during the period I spent writing this dissertation. Her help with some of the illustrations and editing are truly appreciated.