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Robojelly gets an upgrade

Engineers at Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University (VirginiaTech) have developed a robot that mimics the graceful motions of jellyfish so precisely that it has been named Robojelly....

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Super nanowire composite solves 'valley of death' riddle

(Phys.org) —In a world first, a team of researchers from Australia, China and the US has created a super strong metallic composite by harnessing the extraordinary mechanical properties of nanowires.

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Morphees: Shape-shifting mobile devices (w/ Video)

Prototype mobile devices that can change shape on-demand will be unveiled today and could lay down the foundation for creating high shape resolution devices of the future.

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MorePhone: Revolutionary shape-changing phone curls upon a call (w/ Video)

Researchers at Queen's University's Human Media Lab have developed a new smartphone – called MorePhone – which can morph its shape to give users a silent yet visual cue of an incoming phone call, text...

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Shape-shifting alloys hold promise

Imagine untwisting a finger-size spring, then holding the flame from a lighter underneath the unraveled section. Like magic, it twirls itself into a spring again because the metal alloy remembered its...

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Shape-memory alloys for the building industry

When the frame of a pair of glasses is bent out of shape, it's not that easy to return it to its original form. If, however, your spectacles are made of a shape memory alloy then you don't have a...

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Explainer: What is 4-D printing?

Additive manufacturing – or 3D printing – is 30 years old this year. Today, it's found not just in industry but in households, as the price of 3D printers has fallen below US$1,000. Knowing you can...

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Memory shape alloy can be bent 10 million times and still snaps back

(Phys.org)—A combined team of researchers from the University of Kiel in Germany and the University of Maryland in the U.S. has created a shape memory alloy that is able to be bent and snap back to its...

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Can metals remember their shape at nanoscale, too?

University of Constance physicists Daniel Mutter and Peter Nielaba have visualized changes in shape memory materials down to the nanometric scale in an article about to be published in the European...

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Model analyzes shape-memory alloys for use in earthquake-resistant structures

Recent earthquake damage has exposed the vulnerability of existing structures to strong ground movement. At the Georgia Institute of Technology, researchers are analyzing shape-memory alloys for their...

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Neutron scattering charts moves of memory-shape alloys that change structure...

(Phys.org) -- Shape-memory alloys (SMAs) are an engineer's dream, able to shape-shift spontaneously to accommodate changing operating conditions. A research team from the National Aeronautics and Space...

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A windshield wiper for Mars dust developed

A team of researchers at Universidad Carlos III in Madrid has developed a device that works as a windshield wiper to eliminate Mars dust from the sensors on the NASA spacecrafts that travel to the red...

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Varying magnetic fields and temperature conditions help to elucidate smart...

Novel, smart materials like shape memory alloys very often display so-called glass-like magnetism. Other smart materials with similar properties include those which, when exposed to a magnetic field,...

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Strong, elastic 'smart materials' aid design of earthquake-resistant bridges

Bridges are a main component of the transportation infrastructure as we know it today. There are no less than 575,000 highway bridges nationwide, and more than $5 billion are allocated yearly from the...

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Artificial heart to pump human waste into future robots

A new device capable of pumping human waste into the "engine room" of a self-sustaining robot has been created by a group of researchers from Bristol.

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Remembrances of things past: Researchers discover nanoscale shape-memory oxide

(Phys.org) —Listen up nickel-titanium and all you other shape-memory alloys, there's a new kid on the block that just claimed the championship for elasticity and is primed to take over the shape memory...

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Atomic mechanism for historic materials transformation

(Phys.org) —SLAC-led researchers have made the first direct measurements of a small and extremely rapid atomic rearrangement, associated with a class called martensitic transformations, that...

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Using light to change the makeup of plastics

A FAMU-FSU College of Engineering professor is using rays of light to control the shape of a special type of plastic, a project that could have long-term implications for manufacturing, solar energy...

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Spacesuits of the future may resemble a streamlined second skin

For future astronauts, the process of suiting up may go something like this: Instead of climbing into a conventional, bulky, gas-pressurized suit, an astronaut may don a lightweight, stretchy garment,...

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Experts create unique nanoparticles for aerospace industry

A development of three universities enables improved thermal and electronic properties on devices with nickel-titanium alloys.

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A folding robot weighing four grams that crawls and jumps

Researchers at EPFL have come up with a folding, reconfigurable robot that is capable of crawling and jumping. Modelled on the inchworm, it represents a new paradigm in robotics.

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Engineers develop the refrigerator of the future

Cooling is a hugely important process in today's world. But how can cooling be carried out in future in a way that does not harm the climate and that helps to conserve natural resources? The approach...

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Nanocrystalline shape memory alloys lose their memory as the crystalline...

The ability of shape memory alloys, used as materials for medical stents, to revert to their original shape after an increase in temperature is suppressed at nanometer grain sizes due to effects...

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New lightweight shape-shifting alloy shows potential for a variety of...

A team of researchers at Tohoku University has discovered that the Mg-Sc alloy shows shape memory properties. This finding raises the potential for development and application of lightweight SMAs...

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Safety codes can lead to over-built bridges, higher building costs

A recent study by researchers at UBC's Okanagan campus examined a variety of bridge types along with design requirements under the Canadian Highway Bridge Design Code. The study concludes that while...

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Improving earthquake resistance with a single crystal

A new heating method for certain metals could lead to improved earthquake-resistant construction materials.

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Scientists discover superconductor with bounce

The U.S. Department of Energy's Ames Laboratory has discovered extreme "bounce," or super-elastic shape-memory properties in a material that could be applied for use as an actuator in the harshest of...

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The next Mars rover's wheels won't get torn apart

The Curiosity rover has made some incredible discoveries during the five years it has been operating on the surface of Mars. And in the course of conducting its research, the rover has also accrued...

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Robust Bain distortion in the premartensite phase of a platinum-substituted...

The premartensite phase of shape memory and magnetic shape memory alloys is believed to be a precursor state of the martensite phase with preserved austenite phase symmetry. The thermodynamic stability...

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NASA tests new alloy to fold wings in flight

NASA has successfully applied a new technology in flight that allows aircraft to fold their wings to different angles while in the air.

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