3D actuation of foam-core liquid metal droplets
3D actuation of foam-core liquid metal droplets
Precise manipulation of liquid metal (LM) droplets possesses the potential to enable a wide range of applications in reconfigurable electronics, robotics, and microelectromechanical systems. Although a variety of methods have been explored to actuate LM droplets on a 2D plane, versatile 3D manipulation remains a challenge due to the difficulty in overcoming their heavy weight. Here, foam-core liquid metal (FCLM) droplets that can maintain the surface properties of LM while significantly reducing the density are developed, enabling 3D manipulation in an electrolyte. The FCLM droplet is fabricated by coating LM on the surface of a copper-grafted foam sphere. The actuation of the FCLM droplet is realized by electrically inducing Marangoni flow on the LM surface. Two motion modes of the FCLM droplet are observed and studied and the actuation performance is characterized. Multiple FCLM droplets can be readily controlled to form 3D structures, demonstrating their potential to be further developed to form collaborative robots for enabling wider applications.
1293-1299
Chen, Yue
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Chen, Xuanhan
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Zhu, Zhenhong
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Sun, Mingyuan
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Li, Shen
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Gan, Minfeng
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Tang, Shi Yang
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Li, Weihua
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Zhang, Shiwu
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Sun, Lining
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Li, Xiangpeng
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6 December 2022
Chen, Yue
9b646fd4-7826-4d0b-b81a-c4bc5eae1be1
Chen, Xuanhan
f13d4bcc-a04a-43ee-a5cf-10f03ddf0fab
Zhu, Zhenhong
b0315ba1-971b-403f-91b6-fde53052de90
Sun, Mingyuan
f76d928d-d0c1-4138-8f76-15b1999483b8
Li, Shen
43286bfa-4f45-4685-89b2-7955d430c51a
Gan, Minfeng
60e54e93-4112-429d-b01c-6384678f3f1d
Tang, Shi Yang
1d0f15c6-2a3e-4bad-a3d8-fc267db93ed4
Li, Weihua
e2555036-0e48-425a-afeb-db6ffba5238e
Zhang, Shiwu
da008f91-71fa-42fb-879e-68b91429e1d6
Sun, Lining
e4660e06-1315-4059-985f-2cb1e50c5fc8
Li, Xiangpeng
73f32905-ad7c-4ce3-93a4-78237b98f4fb
Chen, Yue, Chen, Xuanhan, Zhu, Zhenhong, Sun, Mingyuan, Li, Shen, Gan, Minfeng, Tang, Shi Yang, Li, Weihua, Zhang, Shiwu, Sun, Lining and Li, Xiangpeng
(2022)
3D actuation of foam-core liquid metal droplets.
Soft Matter, 19 (7), .
(doi:10.1039/d2sm01349e).
Abstract
Precise manipulation of liquid metal (LM) droplets possesses the potential to enable a wide range of applications in reconfigurable electronics, robotics, and microelectromechanical systems. Although a variety of methods have been explored to actuate LM droplets on a 2D plane, versatile 3D manipulation remains a challenge due to the difficulty in overcoming their heavy weight. Here, foam-core liquid metal (FCLM) droplets that can maintain the surface properties of LM while significantly reducing the density are developed, enabling 3D manipulation in an electrolyte. The FCLM droplet is fabricated by coating LM on the surface of a copper-grafted foam sphere. The actuation of the FCLM droplet is realized by electrically inducing Marangoni flow on the LM surface. Two motion modes of the FCLM droplet are observed and studied and the actuation performance is characterized. Multiple FCLM droplets can be readily controlled to form 3D structures, demonstrating their potential to be further developed to form collaborative robots for enabling wider applications.
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Published date: 6 December 2022
Additional Information:
Funding Information:
This work is supported in part by grants from NSFC under Grant No. 61873339, grants from the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province under Grant No. BK20190096, a grant from Natural Science Found for Colleges and Universities of Jiangsu Province under Grant No. 22KJA510006, a grant from Science and Technologies Projects of Suzhou under Grant No. SLC201902, and supported by the State Key Laboratory of Applied Optics. S.-Y. T. is grateful for the support from the Royal Society (IEC/NSFC/201223).
Publisher Copyright:
© 2023 The Royal Society of Chemistry.
Identifiers
Local EPrints ID: 481768
URI: http://eprints.soton.ac.uk/id/eprint/481768
ISSN: 1744-683X
PURE UUID: b87cb572-1245-4b36-91f5-ea08d34ace8d
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Date deposited: 07 Sep 2023 16:35
Last modified: 18 Mar 2024 04:13
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Contributors
Author:
Yue Chen
Author:
Xuanhan Chen
Author:
Zhenhong Zhu
Author:
Mingyuan Sun
Author:
Shen Li
Author:
Minfeng Gan
Author:
Shi Yang Tang
Author:
Weihua Li
Author:
Shiwu Zhang
Author:
Lining Sun
Author:
Xiangpeng Li
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