Multi-functional liquid crystal oligomer networks for human-interactive self-regulation

Self-regulation, or a closed feedback-loop, is a recurring concept in biological control that supports the intelligent behaviors we observe in nature. Hence, replicating self-regulating properties in materials is a major goal in the pursuit of synthetic material intelligence. In this paper, we contribute to the advancement of material intelligence by incorporating our ‘active aperture’ design within liquid crystal oligomer network (LCON) soft actuators to achieve electrically-driven self-regulating behaviors; we harness the reversible thermal actuation of LCONs to establish a duty cycle around a chemically-adjustable threshold temperature in an on-board heating circuit. Utilizing this principle, we developed a self-regulating LCON proof-of-concept demonstrator that mimics the rhythmic compression of a biological heart, designed to oscillate around the 20 °C to 40 °C body temperature range. Hereby, we establish the precedent for the use of material intelligence towards advanced medical applications.