Soft electrohydrodynamic pumps for fluidic power systems

In recent years, the rapid advancement of soft fluidic technologies has led to extensive research and development of soft pumps based on electrohydrodynamic effects, owing to their compact size, quiet operation, and conformable pump architecture. Leveraging these advantages, electrohydrodynamic pumps have gradually emerged as important actuation components in soft fluidic systems, demonstrating promising applications in soft actuators, soft robotics, and wearable devices. This paper reviews the recent advancements of electrohydrodynamic pumps, introduces the operating mechanisms governing charge generation and transfer in dielectric media, and systematically compares different structural design strategies and their associated characteristics. Finally, applications with electrohydrodynamic pumps are discussed, including soft actuators, soft robotics, and thermal management in wearable electronics. Although significant progress has been achieved with electrohydrodynamic pumps, many challenges remain to be addressed, which will be elaborated in the future work section.