Phase Change of Gallium Enables Highly Reversible and Switchable Adhesion.

Ye, Zhou; Lum, Guo Zhan; Song, Sukho; Rich, Steven; Sitti, Metin · Adv Mater · 2016

basic_science · Level V

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Abstract

Gallium exhibits highly reversible and switchable adhesion when it undergoes a solid-liquid phase transition. The robustness of gallium is notable as it exhibits strong performance on a wide range of smooth and rough surfaces, under both dry and wet conditions. Gallium may therefore find numerous applications in transfer printing, robotics, electronic packaging, and biomedicine.