With 4D printing, the objects can change shape or properties using external stimuli such as temperature, light, pH, magnetic field, electricity, and moisture. Additionally, the changes in shape or ...

Using a new technique known as 4D printing, researchers can print out dynamic 3D structures capable of changing their shapes over time. Such 4D-printed items could one day be used in everything from ...

Combining materials with different swelling ratios creates structures that transform into tubes when exposed to water. (Courtesy: Yu Bin Lee) Materials that controllably change shape over time – often ...

Drawing inspiration from how plants change shape in response to environmental stimuli, Harvard scientists from the Wyss Institute and John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences have ...

Shape memory polymers are a fascinating field of polymer research. Such materials have a wide range of uses, including in pharmaceutical, commercial, aerospace, textile products, and other industries.

Three dimensional printing is about to become so passé – welcome to the world of 4D printing. A team of scientists has created a technique for printing objects that can change their shape over time ...

Nowadays, 3D printing allows items to be created from a wide variety of materials — plastic, ceramic, glass, metal and even stranger ingredients such as chocolate and living cells. The machines work ...

Scientists have developed a new method for 4D printing which enables production of objects fixed in one shape that can later be changed to take on a new shape. The 4D printing concept, which allows ...

Pottery has been given a futuristic makeover. It’s now possible to 4D-print ceramics, which could be used to make strong, sophisticated parts in rockets and electronic devices. 4D-printing involves ...

Researchers at EPFL have created the first 4D lipid atlas of vertebrate development, revealing how fats shape our bodies from embryo to organism.