Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39828612›Full record

ArticleAdvanced materials (Deerfield Beach, Fla.)2025

Synergistic Adhesion and Shape Deformation in Nanowire-Structured Liquid Crystal Elastomers.

Robert L Dupont, Yang Xu, Angana Borbora, Xinyu Wang, Fatemeh Azadi, Kaden Havener, Broderick Lewis, Weichen Deng, Benjamin W Tan, Shucong Li and 4 more

Abstract read
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Article in Advanced materials (Deerfield Beach, Fla.), 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
1citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

  1. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

14 authors.

Robert L DupontWilliam G. Lowrie Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA.
Yang XuWilliam G. Lowrie Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA.
Angana BorboraDepartment of Chemistry, Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati, Assam, 781039, India.
Xinyu WangDepartment of Physics, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Clear Water Bay, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Fatemeh AzadiWilliam G. Lowrie Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA.
Kaden HavenerWilliam G. Lowrie Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA.
Broderick LewisWilliam G. Lowrie Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA.
Weichen DengWilliam G. Lowrie Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA.
Benjamin W TanWilliam G. Lowrie Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA.
Shucong LiSchool of Materials Science and Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology, Atlanta, Georgia, 30332, USA.
Rui ZhangDepartment of Physics, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Clear Water Bay, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Yuxing YaoDepartment of Chemical and Biological Engineering, The Hong Kong University of Science and Technology, Clear Water Bay, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Uttam MannaDepartment of Chemistry, Indian Institute of Technology, Guwahati, Assam, 781039, India.
Xiaoguang WangSustainability Institute, The Ohio State University, Columbus, OH, 43210, USA.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4079-9596

Funding

Institute for Materials Research, Ohio State University DMR-2011876National Natural Science Foundation of China 22305175Natural Science Foundation of Guangdong Province 2022A1515011186
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

Nature provides many examples of the benefits of nanoscopic surface structures in areas of adhesion and antifouling. Herein, the design, fabrication, and characterization of liquid crystal elastomer (LCE) films are presented with nanowire surface structures that exhibit tunable stimuli-responsive deformations and enhanced adhesion properties. The LCE films are shown to curl toward the side with the nanowires when stimulated by heat or organic solvent vapors. In contrast, when a droplet of the same solvent is placed on the film, it curls away from the nanowire side due to nanowire-induced capillary forces that cause unequal swelling. This characteristic curling deformation is shown to be reversible and can be optimized to match curved substrates, maximizing adhesive shear forces. By using chemical modification, the LCE nanowire films can be given underwater superoleophobicity, enabling oil repellency under a range of harsh conditions. This is combined with the nanowire-induced frictional asymmetry and the reversible shape deformation to create an underwater droplet mixing robot, capable of performing chemical reactions in aqueous environments. These findings demonstrate the potential of nanowire-augmented LCE films for advanced applications in soft robotics, adaptive adhesion, and easy chemical modification, with implications for designing responsive materials that integrate mechanical flexibility with surface functionality.

Indexed as

adhesionliquid crystal elastomersnanowire structuresstimuli‐responsive materialssuperwettability

Identifiers

PMID39828612
PMCPMC11881676

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.