Title: Liquid crystal polymer actuators with complex and multiple actuations

Author: Xiaoyu Zhang , Jia Wei*, Lang Qin*, Yanlei Yu

Journal: J. Mater. Chem. B, 2024, 12, 6757–6773

Abstract:

Deformable liquid crystal polymers (LCPs), which exhibit both entropic elasticity of polymer networks and anisotropic properties originating from ordered mesogens, have gained more and more interest for use as biomedical soft actuators. Especially, LCP actuators with controllable mesogen alignment, sophisticated geometry and reprogrammability are a rising star on the horizon of soft actuators, since they enable complex and multiple actuations. This review focuses on two topics: (1) the regulation of mesogen alignment and geometry of LCP actuators for complex actuations; (2) newly designed reprogrammable LCP materials for multiple actuations. First, basic actuation mechanisms are briefly introduced. Then, LCP actuators with complex actuations are demonstrated. Special attention is devoted to the improvement of fabrication methods, which profoundly influence the available complexity of the mesogen alignment and geometry. Subsequently, reprogrammable LCP actuators featuring dynamic networks or shape memory effects are discussed, with an emphasis on their multiple actuations. Finally, perspectives on the current challenges and potential development trends toward more intelligent LCP actuators are discussed, which may shed light on future investigations in this field.

论文链接：https://pubs.rsc.org/en/content/articlelanding/2024/tb/d4tb01055h

PDF下载：Liquid crystal polymer actuators with complex and multiple actuations.pdf

文章概述：

为了应对日益复杂的执行任务和多变的工作空间，赋予液晶高分子执行器复杂和多模态执行在近来成为了一个热点研究方向。这篇文章针对以上目标介绍了在加工成型方法和可重新编辑的LCP材料设计方面的科研工作，并且进一步展望了具有更高智能化的LCP执行器的发展。