Small Universal Mechanical Module Driven by a Liquid Metal Droplet

Lab on a Chip ◽  
2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Rui Xue ◽  
Ye Tao ◽  
Haoxiu Sun ◽  
Weiyu Liu ◽  
Zhenyou Ge ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Liquid Metal ◽  
Electric Field ◽  
Metal Droplet ◽  
Research Progress ◽  
Electromechanical Systems ◽  
Liquid Metal Droplet ◽  
Considerable Research

The Gallium-based liquid metal droplet (LMD) from the micro-electromechanical systems (MEMS) has gained much attention due to its precise and sensitive controllability under an electric field. Considerable research progress has...

scholarly journals A Study of Dielectrophoresis-Based Liquid Metal Droplet Control Microfluidic Device

Micromachines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (3) ◽  
pp. 340
Author(s):  
Lu Tian ◽  
Zi Ye ◽  
Lin Gui
Keyword(s):  
Liquid Metal ◽  
Electric Field ◽  
Microfluidic Device ◽  
Bubble Formation ◽  
Metal Droplet ◽  
Uniform Electric Field ◽  
Chip Design ◽  
Pdms Film ◽  
Liquid Metal Droplet ◽  
Droplet Control

This study presents a dielectrophoresis-based liquid metal (LM) droplet control microfluidic device. Six square liquid metal electrodes are fabricated beneath an LM droplet manipulation pool. By applying different voltages on the different electrodes, a non-uniform electric field is formed around the LM droplet, and charges are induced on the surface of the droplet accordingly, so that the droplet could be driven inside the electric field. With a voltage of ±1000 V applied on the electrodes, the LM droplets are driven with a velocity of 0.5 mm/s for the 2.0 mm diameter ones and 1.0 mm/s for the 1.0 mm diameter ones. The whole chip is made of PDMS, and microchannels are fabricated by laser ablation. In this device, the electrodes are not in direct contact with the working droplets; a thin PDMS film stays between the electrodes and the driven droplets, preventing Joule heat or bubble formation during the experiments. To enhance the flexibility of the chip design, a gallium-based alloy with melting point of 10.6 °C is used as electrode material in this device. This dielectrophoresis (DEP) device was able to successfully drive liquid metal droplets and is expected to be a flexible approach for liquid metal droplet control.

scholarly journals Electric Field-Driven Liquid Metal Droplet Generation and Direction Manipulation

Micromachines ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 12 (9) ◽  
pp. 1131
Author(s):  
Jinwon Jeong ◽  
Sangkug Chung ◽  
Jeong-Bong Lee ◽  
Daeyoung Kim
Keyword(s):  
Liquid Metal ◽  
Electric Field ◽  
Flow Rate ◽  
Short Circuit ◽  
Metal Droplet ◽  
Droplet Generation ◽  
Research Areas ◽  
Liquid Metal Droplet ◽  
Maximum Angle ◽  
Hydrodynamic Method

A gallium-based liquid metal got high attention recently, due to the excellent material properties that are useful in various research areas. We report here on electric field-induced liquid metal droplet generation and falling direction manipulation. The well-analyzed electro-hydrodynamic method is a selectable way to control the liquid metal, as the liquid metal is conductive. The electric field-induced liquid metal manipulation can be affected by the flow rate (0.05~0.2 mL/min), voltage (0~7 kV), and distance (15 and 30 mm) between electrodes, which changes the volume of the electric field-induced generated liquid metal droplet and the number of the generated droplets. When the electric field intensity increases or the flow rate increases, the generated droplet volume decreases, and the number of droplets increases. With the highest voltage of 7 kV with 15 mm between electrodes at the 0.2 mL/min flow rate, the lowest volume and the largest number of the generated droplets for 10 s were ~10 nL and 541, respectively. Additionally, we controlled the direction of the generated droplet by changing the electric field. The direction of the liquid metal droplet was controlled with the maximum angle of ~12°. Moreover, we exhibited a short circuit demonstration by controlling the volume or falling direction of the generated liquid metal droplet with an applied electric field.

Operation performance analysis of a liquid metal droplet radiator for space nuclear reactor

2021 ◽  
Vol 158 ◽  
pp. 108301
Author(s):  
Linyi Yang ◽  
Chenglong Wang ◽  
Hao Qin ◽  
Dalin Zhang ◽  
Wenxi Tian ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Performance Analysis ◽  
Liquid Metal ◽  
Nuclear Reactor ◽  
Metal Droplet ◽  
Operation Performance ◽  
Liquid Metal Droplet

scholarly journals Expansion and Fragmentation of a Liquid-Metal Droplet by a Short Laser Pulse

2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (6) ◽  
Author(s):  
S. Yu. Grigoryev ◽  
B. V. Lakatosh ◽  
M. S. Krivokorytov ◽  
V. V. Zhakhovsky ◽  
S. A. Dyachkov ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Liquid Metal ◽  
Laser Pulse ◽  
Metal Droplet ◽  
Short Laser Pulse ◽  
Liquid Metal Droplet

Pseudo-wetting Behaviour of Nanostructures Induced by STM

2007 ◽  
Vol 1059 ◽  
Author(s):  
Paul Campbell ◽  
George Walmsley
Keyword(s):  
Liquid Metal ◽  
Data Storage ◽  
Contact Process ◽  
Temporal Stability ◽  
Surface Displacement ◽  
Metal Droplet ◽  
Similar Process ◽  
Strong Interactions ◽  
Liquid Metal Droplet ◽  
Dynamics Simulations

ABSTRACTThe behavior of nano-scale liquid metal droplets has recently received renewed research interest following the exciting new observations of Sutter and Sutter [1]. In the present paper, we consider whether similar conditions can be generated for observing liquid metal droplet phenomena in a scanning probe architecture. Strong interactions between tip and sample in tunnelling microscopies can be deliberately invoked by lowering the tunnel gap impedance. Indeed, nanoscale features may be created this may, often exhibiting temporal stability suggestive of applications for ultra high density data storage. Alternatively, unstable features may form, and their decay characteristics can be related to local dynamics and kinetics. In real liquids, one such evolutionary mode involves the phenomenon of wetting, and the formation of thin precursor films. Here, it is demonstrated that a similar process may occur for the decay of a nanoscale mound of [presumed] Au atoms onto an Au(111) substrate. The mound is thought to be created by a ‘jump-to-contact’ process when the gap impedance, Zg, is deliberately lowered by reducing the tip-surface displacement. Resultant features have a diameter of circa 30nm, and heights of up to l0nm. They appear stable when scanned repeatedly at gap impedances higher than 10MΩ, however if Zg is lowered below 500kΩ, then morphology can alter dynamically, and a thin layer of material, only two atomic widths thick, is seen to emanate from the periphery. Relaxation in the nanostructure is observed. Interestingly, the observations agree qualitatively with wetting phenomena observed on microscale droplets of involatile liquids on solid surfaces. Favourable comparisons may also be drawn in the light of recent results using molecular-dynamics simulations and Monte-Carlo methods.

Acoustic wave-driven oxidized liquid metal-based energy harvester

2018 ◽  
Vol 81 (2) ◽  
pp. 20902 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jinpyo Jeon ◽  
Sang Kug Chung ◽  
Jeong-Bong Lee ◽  
Seok Joo Doo ◽  
Daeyoung Kim
Keyword(s):  
Liquid Metal ◽  
Acoustic Wave ◽  
Double Layer ◽  
Electrical Double Layer ◽  
Energy Harvester ◽  
Metal Droplet ◽  
Acoustic Energy ◽  
Maximum Output ◽  
Output Current ◽  
Liquid Metal Droplet

We report an oxidized liquid metal droplet-based energy harvester that converts acoustic energy into electrical energy by modulating an electrical double layer that originates from the deformation of the oxidized liquid metal droplet. Gallium-based liquid metal alloy has been developed for various applications owing to the outstanding material properties, such as its high electrical conductivity (metallic property) and unlimited deformability (liquid property). In this study, we demonstrated energy harvesting using an electrical double layer between the acoustic wave-modulated liquid metal droplet and two electrodes. The proposed energy harvester consisted of top and bottom electrodes covered with the dielectric layer and a Gallium-based liquid metal droplet placed between the electrodes. When we applied an external bias voltage and acoustic wave to the proposed device, the contact area between the liquid metal droplet and the electrodes changed, leading to the variation of the capacitance in the electrical double layer and the generation of electrical output current. Using the proposed energy harvester, the maximum output current of 41.2 nA was generated with an applied acoustic wave of 30 Hz. In addition, we studied the relationships between the maximum output current and a variety of factors, such as the size of the liquid metal droplet, the thickness of the hydrophobic layer, and the distance between the top and bottom electrode plates.

scholarly journals A Wheeled Robot Driven by a Liquid-Metal Droplet

2018 ◽  
Vol 30 (51) ◽  
pp. 1805039 ◽  
Author(s):  
Jian Wu ◽  
Shi-Yang Tang ◽  
Tao Fang ◽  
Weihua Li ◽  
Xiangpeng Li ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Liquid Metal ◽  
Metal Droplet ◽  
Liquid Metal Droplet ◽  
Wheeled Robot
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