Publication

Utilization of ubiquitous low-grade waste heat constitutes a possible avenue towards soft
matter actuation and energy recovery opportunities. While most soft materials are not all
that smart relying on power input of some kind for continuous response, we conceptualize a
self-locked thermo-mechano feedback for autonomous motility and energy generation
functions. Here, the low-grade heat usually dismissed as ‘not useful’ is used to fuel a soft
thermo-mechano-electrical system to perform perpetual and untethered multimodal locomotions.
The innately resilient locomotion synchronizes self-governed and auto-sustained
temperature fluctuations and mechanical mobility without external stimulus change, enabling
simultaneous harvesting of thermo-mechanical energy at the pyro/piezoelectric mechanistic
intersection. The untethered soft material showcases deterministic motions (translational
oscillation, directional rolling, and clockwise/anticlockwise rotation), rapid transitions and
dynamic responses without needing power input, on the contrary extracting power from
ambient. This work may open opportunities for thermo-mechano-electrical transduction,
multigait soft energy robotics and waste heat harvesting technologies.

Researcher / Author: Xiao-Qiao Wang, Chuan Fu Tan, Kwok Hoe Chan, Xin Lu, Liangliang Zhu, Sang-Woo Kim and Ghim Wei Ho

NATURE COMMUNICATIONS | (2018) 9:3438; https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/adma.201805921