Shape memory alloys have the ability to “remember” their shape, meaning they can be deformed and then return to their previous shape when heated. However, existing shape memory alloys are generally only able to change from one shape to another, or in response to one specific temperature change. By developing functionally graded shape memory alloys, a team of UK researchers hopes to modify these properties at different points in the material. In this way, the material can change its shape in response to different temperatures at various points on the device.
Professor Duncan Hand of Heriot-Watt University in the UK is developing a new alloy for applications in more complex and controllable micro-robots. To produce this advanced material, the researchers are developing a new technique called functionally graded laser induced forward transfer (FG-LIFT).