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Researchers Build 3-D Structures Out of Liquid Metal

By Guest PostAugust 4, 2013Science3d structures, biomolecular engineering, collin ladd, component, droplets, gallium, indium, john muth, ju hee so, liquid metal, liquid metal alloy, michael dickey, north Carolina, polymer template, printing technology, room temperature, state university, substrate, three dimensions

Researchers from North Carolina State University have developed three-dimensional (3-D) printing technology and techniques to create free-standing structures made of liquid metal at room temperature.

“It’s difficult to create structures out of liquids, because liquids want to bead up. But we’ve found that a liquid metal alloy of gallium and indium reacts to the oxygen in the air at room temperature to form a ‘skin’ that allows the liquid metal structures to retain their shapes,” says Dr. Michael Dickey, an assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at NC State and co-author of a paper describing the work. (more…)

Researchers Create Self-Healing, Stretchable Wires Using Liquid Metal

By Guest PostFebruary 4, 2013Sciencearkema inc, biomolecular engineering, conductive properties, elastic, etienne palleau, gallium, high stress environments, indium, liquid metal alloy, liquid metal core, liquid metal wire, michael dickey, michael smith, microfluidic channels, molecular level, north Carolina, pair of scissors, polymer sheath, researcher, self healing polymer, self healing wires, sharvil desai, state university, stephen reece, three dimensional structures

Researchers from North Carolina State University have developed elastic, self-healing wires in which both the liquid-metal core and the polymer sheath reconnect at the molecular level after being severed.

“Because we’re using liquid metal, these wires have excellent conductive properties,” says Dr. Michael Dickey, an assistant professor of chemical and biomolecular engineering at NC State and co-author of a paper on the work. “And because the wires are also elastic and self-healing, they have a lot of potential for use in technologies that could be exposed to high-stress environments.” (more…)

UCLA Team Develops Highly Efficient Method for Creating Flexible, Transparent Electrodes

By Guest PostNovember 22, 2011Scienceagnw, electronics, highly transparent conductors, indium, indium tin oxide, ito, liquid crystal, mechanical properties, metal oxide nanoparticles, nanomaterials, organic polymers, paul weiss, rui zhu, sensitive organic materials, silver nanowire networks, silver nanowires, transparent electrodes, yang yang

As the market for liquid crystal displays and other electronics continues to drive up the price of indium — the material used to make the indium tin oxide (ITO) transparent electrodes in these devices — scientists have been searching for a less costly and more dynamic alternative, particularly for use in future flexible electronics.

Besides its high price, ITO has several drawbacks. It’s brittle, making it impractical for use in flexible displays and solar cells, and there is a lack of availability of indium, which is found primarily in Asia. Further, the production of ITO films is relatively inefficient. (more…)

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Researchers Build 3-D Structures Out of Liquid Metal

Researchers Create Self-Healing, Stretchable Wires Using Liquid Metal

UCLA Team Develops Highly Efficient Method for Creating Flexible, Transparent Electrodes