Flexible liquid metal materials based hard technology
柔性液态金属材料的硬科技
Wei Rao（饶 伟）
ABSRACT
Room temperature liquid metals (LMs) have the advantages of both metal and fluid materials. LMs are a kind of rare multifunctional materials (typically, gallium based alloys). This kind of material has the properties of strong electrical conductivity, high thermal conductivity, and flexible solid-liquid transformation, and large-scale deformation at room temperature. Gallium based alloys have high surface tension and are easy to oxide, which greatly affects the physical and chemical properties of LMs both at the macro and micro scale. Revealing and regulation of the surface and interface characteristics of LMs play an important role in the fabrication of new materials, the improvement of material properties and expanding applications. We have made progress in a series of novel technologies by using modified liquid metal materials, especially in the fields of printing electronics, life health and flexible intelligent robots. This report will be introduced in three aspects:
1) The basic physical and chemical properties of gallium based liquid metal materials, and the challenges faced by the application of related materials;
2) Research on the liquid metal surface and interface, including interface characteristics regulation, conductivity and thermal conductivity enhancement, novel chemical reactions and biological characteristics, etc;
3) Current application status of flexible liquid metal materials.
室温液态金属材料同时具备金属和流体材料的优势，是一类罕见的多能性材料（典型的如镓基合金）。这类材料具有导电性强、热导率高等属性，同时在室温下还可以进行灵活的固液转变及大尺度变形的特性。镓基合金本身具有较大的表面张力，及在空气下易于氧化的特性，大大影响了宏观及微观材料本身的物理化学特性。通过揭示及灵活调控GaIn合金的表界面特征，对新材料的制备、材料物性的提升及应用功能的拓展，均起到重要的作用。我们利用表界面改性的液态金属材料，取得了系列底层技术的突破，特别是在液态金属印刷电子、生命健康及柔性智能机器人等领域取得了原始创新。本次报告将从三方面进行介绍：
1）镓基液态金属材料的基础物理化学特性，及相关材料应用面临的挑战；
2）液态金属表界面行为特性及功能材料可控制备研究，包括界面特性调控、电导率及导热率提升、新奇的化学反应及生物学特性等；
3）基于柔性液态金属材料的前沿技术和应用现状。
BIOGRAPHY
Wei Rao is a professor at the Technical Institute of Physics and Chemistry (TIPC), Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). Dr. Rao’s research is highly interdisciplinary and covers the material science of liquid metal and micro/nanomaterials. She has published more than 70 papers in peer-reviewed journals such as ACS Nano, material horizon, materials science & Engineering R: reports. Among them, the average impact factor of 43 SCI papers published in the recent 5 years is > 8. In addition, she was one of the leading authors of a book entitled “Advanced Low-cost Medical Technology”. Dr.Rao leads 12 national grants (including NSF, National Key R&D Project, etc.) since 2016.
Dr.Rao was the recipient of the "foreign talents" program by TIPC and the Beijing Youth Talent Support program. Dr.Rao’s team was awarded for the transfer of scientific and technological achievements. At present, Dr.Rao is deputy director of Key Laboratory of Cryogenic Engineering, Chinese Academy of Sciences, and a fellow of Beijing Refrigeration Society.
饶伟研究员就职于中国科学院理化技术研究所。长期从事液态金属及微纳米技术的交叉科学问题研究。近年连续在ACS Nano, Material Horizon, Materials Science & Engineering R: Reports等国内外学术刊物发表70多篇高水平期刊论文。其中，近5年发表的43篇SCI论文平均影响因子>8。曾作为主要作者主编《先进低成本医疗技术》著作。目前担任Nature Communications, Advanced Materials, Advanced Functional Materials, ACS Nano等多个期刊特约审稿人。自2016年以来，主持国家自然科学基金、科技部重点研发计划、北京市科委重大专项、军委科技委项目等共12项。2016年获中科院理化所“引进国外优秀人才”计划，2018年获得北京市青年人才托举计划。2019年所在团队荣获中科院北京分院中国科学院北京分院科技成果转化奖特等奖。目前担任中国科学院低温工程学重点实验室副主任，北京市制冷学会理事。