Laser Micromachining of Magnetoactive Elastomers as Enabling Technology for Magnetoresponsive Surfaces

• Published in: Advanced materials technologies Vol. 7; no. 5
• Main Authors: Kravanja, Gaia, Belyaeva, Inna A., Hribar, Luka, Drevenšek‐Olenik, Irena, Shamonin, Mikhail, Jezeršek, Matija
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: 01-05-2022
• Subjects: laser micromachining; magnetically responsive structure; magnetoactive elastomer; tunable wettability
• ISSN: 2365-709X; 2365-709X
• DOI: 10.1002/admt.202101045

A simple method for structuring of the surface of a magnetoactive elastomer (MAE) on the tens of micrometers scale, which capabilities extend beyond conventional mold‐based polymer casting, is reported. The method relies on the ablation of the material by absorption of nanosecond infrared pulses from a commercial laser. It is shown that it is possible to fabricate parallel lamellar structures with a high aspect ratio (up to 6:1) as well as structures with complex scanning trajectories. The method is fast (fabrication time for the 7 × 7 mm2 is about 60 s), and the results are highly reproducible. To illustrate the capabilities of the fabrication method, both orthogonal to the MAE surface and tilted lamellar structures are fabricated. These magnetosensitive lamellae can be easily bent by ±45° using an external magnetic field of about 230 mT. It is demonstrated that this bending allows one to control the sliding angle of water droplets in a great range between a sticky (>90°) and a sliding state (<20°). Perspectives on employing this fabrication technology for magnetosensitive smart surfaces in microfluidic devices and soft robotics are discussed.
The nanosecond pulsed laser beam is employed to structure the surface of magnetoactive elastomers on the micrometer scale. The fabrication capabilities of the method extend beyond those of mold‐based polymer casting. Control of fabricated tilted lamellar structures by DC magnetic field allows one to switch between different regimes for the sliding angle of the water droplet.