TY  - JOUR
A1  - Liu, Yue
A1  - Gould, Oliver E. C.
A1  - Rudolph, Tobias
A1  - Fang, Liang
A1  - Kratz, Karl
A1  - Lendlein, Andreas
T1  - Polymeric microcuboids programmable for temperature-memory
JF  - Macromolecular materials and engineering
N2  - Microobjects with programmable mechanical functionality are highly desirable for the creation of flexible electronics, sensors, and microfluidic systems, where fabrication/programming and quantification methods are required to fully control and implement dynamic physical behavior. Here, programmable microcuboids with defined geometries are prepared by a template-based method from crosslinked poly[ethylene-co-(vinyl acetate)] elastomers. These microobjects could be programmed to exhibit a temperature-memory effect or a shape-memory polymer actuation capability. Switching temperaturesT(sw)during shape recovery of 55 +/- 2, 68 +/- 2, 80 +/- 2, and 86 +/- 2 degrees C are achieved by tuning programming temperatures to 55, 70, 85, and 100 degrees C, respectively. Actuation is achieved with a reversible strain of 2.9 +/- 0.2% to 6.7 +/- 0.1%, whereby greater compression ratios and higher separation temperatures induce a more pronounced actuation. Micro-geometry change is quantified using optical microscopy and atomic force microscopy. The realization and quantification of microparticles, capable of a tunable temperature responsive shape-change or reversible actuation, represent a key development in the creation of soft microscale devices for drug delivery or microrobotics.
KW  - actuation
KW  - atomic force microscopy
KW  - biomaterials
KW  - microparticles
KW  - shape-memory polymers
Y1  - 2020
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1002/mame.202000333
SN  - 1438-7492
SN  - 1439-2054
VL  - 305
IS  - 10
PB  - Wiley-VCH
CY  - Weinheim
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Fang, Liang
A1  - Gould, Oliver E. C.
A1  - Lysyakova, Liudmila
A1  - Jiang, Yi
A1  - Sauter, Tilman
A1  - Frank, Oliver
A1  - Becker, Tino
A1  - Schossig, Michael
A1  - Kratz, Karl
A1  - Lendlein, Andreas
T1  - Implementing and quantifying the shape-memory effect of single polymeric micro/nanowires with an atomic force microscope
JF  - ChemPhysChem : a European journal of chemical physics and physical chemistry
N2  - The implementation of shape-memory effects (SME) in polymeric micro- or nano-objects currently relies on the application of indirect macroscopic manipulation techniques, for example, stretchable molds or phantoms, to ensembles of small objects. Here, we introduce a method capable of the controlled manipulation and SME quantification of individual micro- and nano-objects in analogy to macroscopic thermomechanical test procedures. An atomic force microscope was utilized to address individual electro-spun poly(ether urethane) (PEU) micro- or nanowires freely suspended between two micropillars on a micro-structured silicon substrate. In this way, programming strains of 10 +/- 1% or 21 +/- 1% were realized, which could be successfully fixed. An almost complete restoration of the original free-suspended shape during heating confirmed the excellent shape-memory performance of the PEU wires. Apparent recovery stresses of sigma(max,app)=1.2 +/- 0.1 and 33.3 +/- 0.1MPa were obtained for a single microwire and nanowire, respectively. The universal AFM test platform described here enables the implementation and quantification of a thermomechanically induced function for individual polymeric micro- and nanosystems.
KW  - cyclic thermomechanical testing
KW  - atomic force microscopy
KW  - soft matter micro- and nanowires
KW  - shape-memory effect
KW  - materials science
Y1  - 2018
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1002/cphc.201701362
SN  - 1439-4235
SN  - 1439-7641
VL  - 19
IS  - 16
SP  - 2078
EP  - 2084
PB  - Wiley-VCH
CY  - Weinheim
ER  -