Soft materials and stiff materials both have their uses, but the two properties typically aren't seen in one substance. RoboFabric is an exception, then, in that it can be switched back and forth ...

What happens to soft matter when gravity disappears? To answer this, UvA physicists launched a fluid dynamics experiment on a sounding rocket. The suborbital rocket reached an altitude of 267 km ...

A new study takes a step forward in clarifying how soft materials, both natural and synthetic, fail under stress. The work by researchers at the University of Illinois Urban-Champaign addresses a wide ...

A ring of beads connected to tentacles A modeling study shows how chemical reactions can stimulate motion in simple systems, like the structure here—made of enzyme coated beads connected to ...

Researchers at Penn State have developed a fabrication method that can print multifunctional “smart synthetic skin” — ...

Is there a way to stick hard and soft materials together without any tape, glue or epoxy? A new study published in ACS Central Science shows that applying a small voltage to certain objects forms ...

It was found that the hard material must be capable of conducting ions, and the soft material has to contain salt ions. The scientists believe that a chemical bond forms when the two materials ...

A research team discovers universal mechanism that leads to adhesion hysteresis in soft materials. Through a combination of experimental observations and simulations, the team demonstrated that ...

A soft material performs NAND logic with visible light, showing a path toward materials that process information without conventional electronic circuitry. “This project has been part of my scientific ...

Is there a way to stick hard and soft materials together without any tape, glue or epoxy? A new study shows that applying a small voltage to certain objects forms chemical bonds that securely link the ...