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Researchers Develop Ultra-Stretchable Wire
An experimental wire made of an elastic polymer tube filled with a liquid metal alloy can stretch to eight times its original length while maintaining electrical conductivity.
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An experimental wire made of an elastic polymer tube filled with a liquid metal alloy can stretch to eight times its original length while maintaining electrical conductivity.
Developers at North Carolina State University say filling the tube with flowable metal permits far more stretching than alternative approaches that embed electrical conductors within the elastic polymer itself.
The fibers have a triangular cross section about 600 microns across that becomes more circular as the wire stretches, according to the researchers. Their material consists of a skin made of a triblock copolymer styrene resin and filled with a liquid alloy of gallium and indium.
The NCSU team acknowledges that electrical resistance increases as the wire stretches and its diameter narrows. One roadblock to commercial production: how to handle leakage of the alloy center if the wire breaks.
The scientists described their work HERE in Advanced Functional Materials.
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