liquid metal

Metalworking usually requires very high heat and pressure, but scientists in Singapore have now demonstrated a way to make very pure metal structures at room temperature. It’s inspired by the exoskeletons of crabs and insects.

Researchers have come up with a 3D printing method using liquid metal that's claimed to produce structures at least 10 times faster than existing metal additive manufacturing processes, though it does so at the expense of fine detail.

Science continues to make advances in smart fabrics. Now, a team of international researchers has created a wearable textile that can self-repair, is antibacterial, and could even be used to monitor a person’s heart rhythm.

A team of researchers has developed a new material that’s not only elastic, but is impervious to gases and liquids – something this kind of material is usually bad at. The material could be useful for making flexible batteries or wearable electronics.

Researchers in New Zealand and Australia have grown tiny metal snowflakes, cubes, rods and other shapes. The nanocrystals form like snow out of a liquid metal, demonstrated an intriguing new potential method for manufacturing nanoscale structures.

Although there are now a number of devices that generate electricity via movement, most of them only work in dry environments. A new one, however, also works underwater – meaning it could be used in implants, or wearables that get exposed to sweat.

A new, surprisingly simple method merges two metals into one nanocrystal structure. This could allow almost any two metals to be combined, creating brand new types of intermetallic nanocrystals that could be useful for a whole range of applications.

Soft robots and flexible electronics aren't as protected as their rigid-shelled counterparts, so they're more likely to get ripped or punctured. A new stretchable, self-healing conductive material was designed with this limitation in mind.

Engineers have found a way to make liquid metals switch between reflective surfaces or those that scatter light. The transition only requires a small zap of electricity and could be used to make mirrors that can be switched on or off.

Researchers claim to have developed a new battery that mixes the best of both liquid and solid batteries. The new design is the first all-liquid-metal battery that can operate at room temperature, and it apparently outperforms lithium-ion batteries.

Imagine if there were a metallic device that could be transported all squished down, but that would automatically "bloom" out into its useful form when heated. Well, that may soon be possible, thanks to a newly developed liquid metal lattice.

Flow batteries have the potential to help store energy on a large scale, but there are a few issues still to overcome. Stanford engineers have developed a new type of flow battery that might be scalable, safe, efficient and inexpensive, using a metal mixture that remains liquid at room temperature.