Shape-Evolving Structured Liquids

Paul Y Kim¹, Shipei Zhu¹, Joe Forth^{2

3}, Ganhua Xie⁴, David A King^{1

5}, Brett A Helms^{1

6}, Paul D Ashby^{1

6}, Ahmad K Omar^{1

5}, Thomas P Russell^{1

7

8}

Affiliations

¹ Materials Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA.
² Department of Physics, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, L69 7ZE, UK.
³ Department of Chemistry, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, L69 7ZD, UK.
⁴ State Key Laboratory of Chemo and Biosensing, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, 410082, China.
⁵ Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA.
⁶ The Molecular Foundry, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA.
⁷ Polymer Science and Engineering Department, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA.
⁸ Advanced Institute for Materials Research (AIMR), Tohoku University, Sendai, 980-8577, Japan.

PMID: 40331500
DOI: 10.1002/adma.202500804

Shape-Evolving Structured Liquids

Paul Y Kim et al. Adv Mater. 2025 Jul.

. 2025 Jul;37(28):e2500804.

doi: 10.1002/adma.202500804. Epub 2025 May 7.

Authors

Paul Y Kim¹, Shipei Zhu¹, Joe Forth^{2

3}, Ganhua Xie⁴, David A King^{1

5}, Brett A Helms^{1

6}, Paul D Ashby^{1

6}, Ahmad K Omar^{1

5}, Thomas P Russell^{1

7

8}

Affiliations

¹ Materials Sciences Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA.
² Department of Physics, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, L69 7ZE, UK.
³ Department of Chemistry, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, L69 7ZD, UK.
⁴ State Key Laboratory of Chemo and Biosensing, College of Chemistry and Chemical Engineering, Hunan University, Changsha, 410082, China.
⁵ Department of Materials Science and Engineering, University of California, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA.
⁶ The Molecular Foundry, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, 94720, USA.
⁷ Polymer Science and Engineering Department, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA, 01003, USA.
⁸ Advanced Institute for Materials Research (AIMR), Tohoku University, Sendai, 980-8577, Japan.

PMID: 40331500
DOI: 10.1002/adma.202500804

Abstract

Migration, division, and reconfiguration - functions essential to living systems - are driven by active processes. Developing synthetic mimics is an outstanding challenge. Lipid bilayers that bound natural systems are locally deformed by active species, e.g., microtubules, but the resulting non-equilibrium shapes relax when active species motion ceases, and the shape changes lack immediate control. A fully synthetic system is described, driven by active particles encapsulated by a reconfigurable nanoparticle-surfactant membrane that undergoes shape fluctuations reminiscent of living cells. These shape changes are preserved after particle activity stops. Surfactant concentration tunes the interfacial tension over three orders of magnitude, making on-demand shape evolution possible. Directional migration, division, and reconfiguration across multiple scales are possible, leading to a new class of biomimetic, reconfigurable, and responsive materials, paving the way for autonomous synthetic machines.

Keywords: active matter; interfacial assembly; structured liquids.

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References

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Shape-Evolving Structured Liquids

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Shape-Evolving Structured Liquids

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