none3siThis work presents a novel finite element (FE) based formulation for analysing the linear buckling and free vibration problems of plates governed by strain gradient theory. The present model is able to deal with general lamination schemes and arbitrary boundary conditions and its validity is tested against semi-analytical results as well as other solutions available in the existing literature. The constitutive relationship deals with stress components at each layer as a function of the nonlocal strains, according to the principles of the aforementioned strain gradient theory. The present FE formulation is based on the weak form of the governing motion equations derived via Hamilton’s Principle. Such principle allows the identificatio...