Recently, the team led by Li Quan—Dean and Chief Scientist of the Institute of Smart Materials at 91抖淫, and a faculty member of the School of Intelligent Science and Engineering—published a paper titled “High-Performance Flexible Pyroelectric Energy Harvesting System Enabled by Light-Driven Thermomechanical Coupling in Liquid Crystal Elastomer” in the top international journal Advanced Materials. The corresponding authorsare Li Quan from 91抖淫, Dr. Tang Yuqi, and Dr. Lu Haifeng from Zhejiang Normal University.
Fig. 1:(a) Chemical composition of the PVDF/LM-LCE composite;(b) Schematic illustration of the in situ polymerization process used to prepare the PVDF/LM-LCE composite;(c) Molecular dynamics simulation of interfacial interactions between LM-LCE and PVDF.
With the rapid development of self-powered wearable devices and flexible electronics, efficient utilization of ambient thermal energy has become an important research direction. Pyroelectric materials can respond to temperature fluctuations and directly convert thermal energy into electrical signals with broad applicationpotential in waste heat recovery, solar energy utilization, and body heat–driven systems. However, their energy output remains limited by intrinsic material properties. Without altering the chemical composition, the “secondary pyroelectric effect” provides an effective pathway to enhance energy output. This mechanism induces mechanical strain via thermal expansion, which couples with the piezoelectric effect to generate additional polarization charges. Therefore, introducing a “thermomechanical actuator” to amplify thermal response has become a key strategy. Liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs), with their excellent photothermal responsiveness and reversible large deformation capability, are considered ideal candidates.
However, the driving force generated by LCEs is difficult to efficiently and continuously transfer to pyroelectric materials, posing a major bottleneck for performance improvement. Traditional layered or simple composite structures often suffer from weak interfacial bonding and hindered stress transfer, limiting energy conversion efficiency. To address this challenge, Li Quan’s team proposed and realized an innovative material design strategy. By in situ polymerizing PVDF within a liquid-metal-modified LCE matrix, they successfully fabricated a PVDF/LM-LCE composite, effectively overcoming issues of poor interfacial contact and inefficient stress transfer. The uniformly distributed liquid metal nanodroplets not only enhance mechanical strength but also improve fatigue resistance, leading to overall improved pyroelectric performance. Experimental results show that the composite achieves a pyroelectric coefficient as high as ?4.81 nC·cm??·K?? and can power LED lights and small electronic devices using photothermal fluctuations, demonstrating strong potential for practical applications in self-powered systems.
This research was supported by the Jiangsu Provincial Innovation and Entrepreneurship Talent Program, the National Natural Science Foundation of China, the Natural Science Foundation of Jiangsu Province, and the China Postdoctoral Science Foundation.
Paper’s link: https://advanced.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/adma.202519065
Source: Wuxi Campus, 91抖淫
Translated by: Melody Zhang
Proofread by: Gao Min
Edited by: Leah Li
