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Researchers at Pusan National University (PNU) and Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) have developed a 3D printable liquid crystal elastomer that can be programmed to either contract or elongate when heated.
Led by Professor Suk-kyun Ahn of PNU, the team used a smectic liquid crystal elastomer (LCE) whose molecular alignment can be switched during direct ink writing by adjusting printing speed or temperature. According to the researchers, this allows opposite actuation behaviors to be produced from the same material formulation.
The study, titled Alignment switching in 3D-printed smectic liquid crystal elastomers, was published in Nature Communications. Conventional extrusion printing of liquid crystal elastomers typically aligns molecules along the printing direction. This restricts e