Liquid Crystal Elastomer Twist Fibers toward Rotating Microengines

Area of Science:

• Materials Science
• Soft Robotics
• Energy Harvesting

Background:

• Untethered twist fibers offer simple designs and continuous rotational deformation in response to stimuli.
• Achieving high torque and reversible responsiveness simultaneously in these fibers is a significant challenge.

Purpose of the Study:

• To design and develop a liquid crystal elastomer twist fiber (LCETF) with untethered and reversible responsiveness.
• To enhance rotational performance for practical applications in microengines and energy conversion.

Main Methods:

• Fabrication of LCETFs with fixed mesogen alignment.
• Utilizing heat triggering to disrupt mesogenic orientation and induce rotational deformation.
• Characterization of rotational deformation, specific torque, and energy conversion efficiency.

Main Results:

• The developed LCETF exhibits reversible responsiveness and untethered operation.
• Achieved a rotational deformation of 243.6° mm⁻¹ and a specific torque of 10.1 N m kg⁻¹.
• Demonstrated heat-to-electricity conversion with an induction voltage up to 9.4 V.

Conclusions:

• The LCETF design overcomes the challenge of simultaneously achieving reversible responsiveness and high rotational performance.
• The high performance of LCETFs broadens their potential applications in energy harvesters, micromachines, and soft robots.