Speaker
Description
Recent advances in polymer chemistry and micro-fabrication have enabled the creation of adaptive materials capable of responding to external stimuli across multiple length scales. By integrating stimuli-responsive units at the molecular level with precise three-dimensional design, it is now possible to engineer synthetic systems that exhibit controlled motion, shape change and sensing. 1-3 This work showcases the development and structuring of responsive soft materials, including hydrogels and liquid crystal elastomers, using direct laser writing (DLW) via two-photon polymerisation (2PP). The combination of programmable micro-fabrication and intrinsic material responsiveness enables the realisation of sophisticated 4D microstructures that actuate on demand in response to light, temperature, electrochemical inputs, or changes in the local chemical environment. Fine, spatially resolved control over mechanical properties is achieved through modulation of laser writing parameters, allowing directional, anisotropic, and pre-programmed shape transformations to be encoded directly into three-dimensional architectures. Such adaptive microstructures demonstrate functions including controlled movement, and micro-scale actuation, highlighting the potential of these systems as bio-inspired platforms for applications ranging from soft micro-robotics and sensing to fluidics and drug delivery.
References:
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Donato, S.; Nocentini, S.; Martella, D., Kolagatla, S.; Wiersma, D. S.; Parmeggiani, C.; Delaney, C.; Florea, L. Small 2023, 2306802.
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Murphy, R. D.; Delaney, C.; Kolagatla, S.; Florea, L.; Hawker, C. J.,; Heise, A. Adv. Funct. Mat. 2023, 2306710.
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Ennis, A.; Nicdao, D.; Kolagatla, S.; Dowling, L.; Tskhe, Y.; Thompson, A.J.; Trimble, D.; Delaney, C.; Florea, L., Adv. Funct. Mat. 2023, p.2213947.
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del Pozo, M.; Delaney, C.; Pilz da Cunha, M.; Debije, M. G.; Florea, L., Schenning, A. P. Small Structures 2022, 3(2), 2100158.
