Work

Biomimetic low-temperature contracting fiber for high stroke and controllable actuations

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: Flexible actuators have significant potential in intelligent micromachines, artificial muscle, and soft robotics. However, achieving actuators with high actuation performance and feedback sensitivity remains challenging. Inspired by the dual “command-execution-feedback” of the mimic octopus, a fiber actuator with high stroke and visual-electronic dual feedback is designed by introducing an ionic liquid conductive network and a visual component of spiropyrane. By constructing a unique interchain slipping structure inside the liquid crystal elastomer (LCE), the nematic to isotropic transition temperature and maximum stroke temperature dropped to 24.29 °C and 62.3 °C, with decreases of 73.51% and 39.28%, respectively. Besides, the actuation stroke increases to 43.41% with an improvement of 77.11%, and the feedback sensitivity reaches to 69.17, along with a high work capacity of 189.12 kJ/m 3 . These provide a promising strategy for next-generation flexible actuators capable of high work capacity, large stroke, and real-time feedback.

Source: npj Flexible Electronics

DOI: 10.1038/s41528-025-00466-9