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LCPs are often described as "artificial muscles"
that can convert thermal, chemical and electromagnetic stimuli into
mechanical energy, Elias said. LCPs are polymers made from liquid
crystalline molecules, which are well-known for their use in display
applications, such as laptop computer screens, where they are used for
their unique optical properties.
Elias and her colleagues conducted a number of
preliminary LCP experiments on a microscale in order to better
understand and describe the material's mechanical properties. They
believe the material holds promise as a microscale building block.
It's now up to other engineers and scientist to take this knowledge
and create useful microscale devices.
The most commonly cited goal among micro- and
nanoscale researchers is to create a lab-on-a-chip – a tiny system
that could be used, for example, to analyze blood samples and biopsies
much faster, cheaper and more comprehensively than current methods.
In the past, most microscale research and
development funds have targeted silicon, the fundamental material in
the semiconductor industry. But LCPs are less brittle and more pliable
than silicon, Elias said, adding that LCP devices could be tailored to
respond to specific external stimuli, such as temperature changes and
UV radiation exposure, which could makes them easier to activate than
silicon. And, perhaps most importantly of all, LCPs are less expensive
than silicon and potentially easier to process, Elias said.
"Ultimately, we believe liquid crystalline polymers
will be fully integrated in microelectromechanical systems, such as
the emerging lab-on-a-chip applications," she said. |
