Engineers at UT Austin have created a new kind of gel that can repair and reconnect electronic circuits. KUT's Mose Buchele reports on possible applications, from smarter smart phones to self-healing robot armies.
The gel’s inventor, UT Mechanical Engineering Professor Guihua Yu, says self-healing gels have actually been around for a while—but this stuff is different.
This gel reconnects broken electronic circuits as it repairs itself. And Yu says it does it all on its own without the need to apply heat or pressure.
“Meaning, they can self-repair and regain function after it’s damaged,” he says.
So, are you thinking what I’m thinking?
“Yes! And that’s another application, so basically it could be used for an electronic skin,” says Yu.
So it actually could be used for robots, he says. “Absolutely. That’s like for future electronics.”
But in the meantime, he says there are more immediate applications. The gel could help batteries become longer lasting, it could improve wearable technology, and it might come in handy if you ever break a cell phone.
“If they can regain the function by themselves, that’s going to be very, very useful.”
He says the next step is to partner with industry to develop applications. No word yet on whether Cyberdyne Systems has shown any interest.
