INSPIRATION IN SIMPLE THINGS

INSPIRATION IN SIMPLE THINGS

     We all can be important persons in science or other fields. We all can get the inspiration of something and create innovate things that are important for the humanity. I am going to present a resume of a new of C&NE that is an example of inspiration in simple things.

     Gecko feet are covered with microscopic, spatula-shaped hairlike features that allow them to run up walls and across ceilings. The millions of microhairs are called setae. Each seta is between 30 and 130 micrometers long and branches out to end in several hundred flattened tips called spatulae. This unique structure allows the gecko’s toes to have unusually close contact with the surfaces it climbs. The close contact allows intermolecular forces which are significant at short distances, to hold the gecko to the wall.

     As we know, molecules can attract each other at moderate distances and repel each other at close range. The attractive forces are collectively called "van der Waals forces". Van der Waals forces are much weaker than chemical bonds, and random thermal motion around room temperature can usually overcome or disrupt them.

    Researchers have previously mimicked these features by creating materials with flat-topped microscopic pillars that cling to surfaces via van der Waals interactions. A new take on adhesives inspired by sticky gecko feet has led to soft, stretchy silicone patches that conduct electricity and cling fast to skin, even when underwater. The material could be used as comfortable, low-cost, reusable electrocardiography (ECG) electrodes for heart monitoring. Today’s disposable silver-based ECG electrodes have rigid metal parts and use glues that can irritate the skin. They can come off when wet or from too much movement, limiting a user’s ability to shower or exercise during longer periods of monitoring.

     The new material could also be “crucially important in next-generation skinlike technologies for wearable electronics,” says John A. Rogers, a materials science professor at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign, who was not involved in the work. Rogers and others are developing conformable tattoolike sensors to monitor fitness and various health conditions. The new material could make such devices more durable while doubling as an electrode.

     Finally, Ronald S. Fearing, an electrical engineering and computer science professor at the University of California, Berkeley, says that such low-cost, nontoxic, skin-compatible electrodes may “find applications in interfaces for prosthetic devices, or perhaps even for monitoring muscle performance while exercising.” And unlike present-day ECG electrodes, he says, “long-term wear could be an option.” The KAIST team hopes to create other gecko adhesive variations by adding materials other than carbon. “For example, fillers with functionalities such as thermal conductivity, magnetism, and luminosity are excellent candidates for realizing different types of multifunctional, self-adhesive platforms,” Jeon says.


If you want to read more about this new, go to references. Do not forget see the images below.
Thank you!
Stephanie

A scanning electron micrograph shows 15-µm-tall pillars made of a polydimethylsiloxane composite containing carbon nanotubes and graphene powder. The soft, stretchy material conducts electricity and sticks to various surfaces, including skin.

References
http://cen.acs.org/articles/94/web/2016/04/Gecko-inspired-adhesives-stretchy-conductive.html
Images from:

https://www.google.com.pr/search?q=gecko&espv=2&biw=1517&bih=692&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjb56CVvf_LAhUEx4MKHUFYC80Q_AUIBigB&dpr=0.9#imgrc=fxeMwgrruW1BUM%3A

https://www.google.com.pr/search?q=gecko&espv=2&biw=1517&bih=692&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjb56CVvf_LAhUEx4MKHUFYC80Q_AUIBigB&dpr=0.9#tbm=isch&q=gecko+foot+microscope&imgrc=Fmq2wKguMkc7wM%3A