Successfully studied electronic skin to help disguise as gecko

Geckos often change their skin color when they find themselves threatened or want to show off with other animals of the same species, this is a characteristic of this creature and very few species have similar defense mechanisms. Recently, Stanford University researchers have successfully developed an electronic skin that functions as a human skin and in addition to the ability to change colors like a gecko.

Successful development of electronic skin helps camouflage like geckos

Electronic skin - also known as e-skin - is a paper-like, durable, flexible material that has features similar to human skin such as pressure and temperature. This material has been researched by Professor Zhenan Bao and Stanford colleagues since 2008, she has always thought of a new generation of artificial parts with electronic skin that acts like real human skin. , even electronic clothes that change color in the future. With the number of millions of micro-sensors per square centimeter of the surface, electronic skins are able to sense the weight of a fly sitting on them. Before integrating the ability to change colors, scientists have tried many other features on electronic skin such as turning solar energy into electricity, a mechanism to recover itself when damaged .

Structure of electronic skin.

Dr. Ho-Hsiu Chou, the first person to come up with the idea of ​​electronic skin, said that unlike previous tests, this is the first time the research team has integrated 3 features at the same time on the skin. electronics: feel the impact, create surface tension and change color . In it, the color change feature is a completely new thing. It is based on the addition of the main skin layers made of special resins combined with nanocarbon tubes an electrochromic polymer layer - the material can change the brightness and color itself when an electrical current is passed. What's interesting here is that in addition to changing color when an electric current is passed, the electronic skin changes color according to external forces.

Experiment with teddy bears.

To prove this theory, Dr. Chou took a stuffed bear with an electronic skin and gently shook his hand, for a moment the skin changed from red to gray. He removed his hand and the skin changed to red and when he shook his hand with the teddy bear, the skin changed from that color to blue. In addition, Chou said that if the technology was applied to smarpthones, users could change the "shirt" for their phones without using the shell. However, this feature is still limited when it only changes to 2 colors, but he also confirmed that his team will make these skins change to any color in the next 1-3 years.

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Finally, Dr. Chou and Professor Bao affirmed that with the aim of making devices that are close to humans in the future, electronic skin will be very safe when it does not cause inflammation of the skin. In addition, both scientists are looking for a way for these electronic skins to self-destruct when they expire.