Research Area B
Faculty of Engineering | Department of Microsystems Engineering University of Freiburg
Project description I am working on liquid crystalline elastomers (LCE). They are often described as artificial muscles due to their ability to actuate upon exposure to specific triggers. In my research, I integrate light-responsive units into the LCE so that the programmed actuation can be induced by light rather than by temperature. By improving the chemistries of these light-responsive units I will enable more specific and efficient actuation. I am closely collaborating on this project with Jasleen Kaur Lall, who works on integrating the LCE into microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) and on building demonstrators and more complex actuation patterns.
Supervisor and dissertation Prof. Dr. Jürgen Rühe
Paula Straub completed her dissertation in April 2023.
Dissertation: Triggering motion by light: the effect of arylazopyrazoles on liquid crystalline networks