Sunday, February 15, 2009

Artificial muscles

Artificial muscles are plastics that change shape and size under electrical stimulation. Because they are plastics—that is, polymers—they are light and can be cheap, pliable, quiet, and shatterproof. Also, they can be designed for particular properties, filled with sensors and other components, shaped for specific actuators, and manufactured on scales both macro and micro. Unlike most active materials, such as semiconductors and shape-memory alloys, however, these electroactive polymers work according to a variety of principles, offering different tradeoffs of power, extensibility, reaction time, and other qualities.

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