The technique of keyhole surgery minimises scarring, speeds healing and reduces the risk of infection. However, it is extremely difficult to carry out delicate surgical procedures accurately in a ...

Imagine a world of shape-shifters. A surgeon inserts a small lump of plastic into an anesthetized patient and, like magic, it expands into a life-saving mesh tube that keeps a formerly clogged artery ...

After being severely and quasi-plastically distorted, shape memory materials (SMMs) are able to recover their original shape when a right stimulus is applied 1. This phenomenon is known as the shape ...

Researchers are developing unique shape-memory polymers, which change shape upon heating, to open blocked arteries, probe neurons in the brain and engineer a tougher spine. Researchers at the Georgia ...

Shape memory materials that can revert back into a desired form after being bent, twisted and stretched are finding their way into a number of applications, ranging from sports bras to more efficient ...

Energy is stored in the crystalline structure of the polymer as it's stretched, allowing it to snap back when heated. Share on Facebook (opens in a new window) Share on X (opens in a new window) Share ...

When stretched or deformed, shape memory polymers return to their original shapes after heat or light is applied. These materials show great promise for soft robotics, smart biomedical devices and ...