Researchers from MIT and Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD) have recently developed 3D printed materials that “remember” their original shape. The polymers could be used for a variety of applications, including turning solar panels toward the sun as it moves through the sky, but the end goal of the researchers is to use body temperature as the external stimulus.

According to the article, Nicholas X. Fang, associate professor, said “We ultimately want to use body temperature as a trigger. If we can design these polymers properly, we may be able to form a drug delivery device that will only release medicine at the sign of a fever.”

Research into memory-shape polymers has been trending, possibly due to the myriad end-user applications. The ability to switch between two states—the low-temperature solid state and the high-temperature rubbery state—make the technology intriguing. The MIT and SUTD team’s results were published in early August in Scientific Reports.

Read the full story here.

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