'Giant flexoelectricity' breakthrough in soft elastomers paves way for improved robots and self-powered pacemakers
Researchers have demonstrated "giant flexoelectricity" in soft elastomers that could improve robot movement range and make self-powered pacemakers a real possibility. In a paper published this month in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, scientists from the University of Houston and Air Force Research Laboratory explain how to engineer ostensibly ordinary substances like silicone rubber into an electric powerhouse.
What do the following have in common: A self-powered implanted medical device, a soft human-like robot and how we hear sound? The answer as to why these two disparate technologies and biological phenomena are similar lies in how the materials they are made of can significantly change in size and shape—or deform—like a rubber band, when an electrical signal is sent.
Some materials in nature can perform this function, acting as an energy converter that deforms when an electrical signal is sent through or supplies electricity when manipulated. This is called piezoelectricity and is useful in creating sensors and laser electronics, among several other end uses. However, these naturally occurring materials are rare and consist of stiff crystalline structures that are often toxic, three distinct drawbacks for human applications.
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