A team of Florida State University researchers has discovered a way to use low-energy light to manipulate photopolymers or plastic films, a discovery that has implications for a wide range of technologies that use light as an energy source.
The research was done by Associate Professors of Chemistry and Biochemistry Ken Hanson and Justin Kennemur and a college professor.
Hanson said they want to harness low-energy light and produce mechanical force as efficient as possible.
Researchers around the world are working on materials that respond to external stimuli. These stimuli can cause a material to change its shape, its structure or its mechanical properties, and have been used in research in robotic, drug delivery and more.
FSU's research team is interested in light- responsive systems for mechanical work.
The research shows that the conversion of light for this purpose is inefficient and requires a high-energy light. Hanson, Kennemur and Kennemur felt that their combined expertise might help them develop a new approach.
The research team collaborated on a new process that harvests low-energy light and uses it to bend plastic films.
Slow degradation can occur when exposed to high-energy ultraviolet light. It's a great way to circumvent this issue.
The FSU team was experimenting with a photopolymer. It can be used to make dyes and lasers. Hanson, Kennemur and Oates used a method called a triplet sensitizer to convert the low-energy light into high-energy mechanical work.
The research team saw the films bend when they shone a light on them.
"For the first time, low-energy photons can manipulate stilbene to precisely control the shape of apolymer with polarized light, and it's remarkable how that can be done."
The researchers plan to refine this process further in the future using a variety of materials and advanced modeling tools.
Drake Beery and Gina Guillory are two of the contributors to the paper.
More information: Drake Beery et al, Enabling Lower Energy Light Harvesting in Stilbene-Based Photomechanical Polymers via Triplet Sensitization, ACS Applied Polymer Materials (2022). DOI: 10.1021/acsapm.2c00660 Journal information: Applied Polymer Materials
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