Docentship lecture: Soft Material-Printed Microsystems

Lecturer: PhD, Seunghee Jeong
Title: Soft Material-Printed Microsystems
Chairperson: professor Klas Hjort
Representative of the Docentship Committee: professor Jan Isberg

Abstract:
Soft materials provide unconventional properties to design compliant, stretchable and conformal microsystems, such as sensors, actuators and energy conversion systems, applicable for soft robots, wearable systems and non-invasive medical instruments. But the unique characteristics of compliant and large deformations require new design approach of microsystems by understanding materials’ properties and their processibility. In this lecture, a design approach of implementing soft materials and structural stiffness in microsystems will be introduced and discussed. Softness and stiffness of materials as well as structures enable novel functionality in largely deformable microsystem designs. Stiffness changing fibers in tensegrity enabled multifunctional structures by using soft materials and stiff structures. Dielectric actuators with a flexible hinge, that is stiffer than soft actuators, increased a vibration frequency of the actuation and also, the deformation was constrained as a wanted shape by the stiff hinge. A printing methodology has been proven as a good solution to fabricate multi-layered structures with heterogeneous soft materials for various printed microsystems. 

The lecture will be given in English.
Welcome!