Polymers that exhibit shape-memory effect (SME) are an important class of materials in medicine, especially for minimally invasive deployment of devices. Professor Subbu Venkatraman and his group from ...

The technique of keyhole surgery minimises scarring, speeds healing and reduces the risk of infection. However, it is extremely difficult to carry out delicate surgical procedures accurately in a ...

Shape-memory polymers have long intrigued materials scientists because they can be bent or twisted into a new configuration, which they’ll hold until some stimulus—such as heat—reverts them to their ...

When stretched or deformed, shape memory polymers return to their original shapes after heat or light is applied. These materials show great promise for soft robotics, smart biomedical devices and ...

While shape-memory materials do have some interesting potential applications, many of them require the application of heat in order to change shape – and that could cause problems, in ...

Imagine a world of shape-shifters. A surgeon inserts a small lump of plastic into an anesthetized patient and, like magic, it expands into a life-saving mesh tube that keeps a formerly clogged artery ...

Shape memory materials that can revert back into a desired form after being bent, twisted and stretched are finding their way into a number of applications, ranging from sports bras to more efficient ...

Researcher Ken Gall uses this thermomechanical test frame to determine the maximum possible shape change of his team's shape-memory polymer. Shape-memory alloys and polymers are the contortionists of ...