Future of MaterialsScience has spoken: magic carpets actually exist. Well, sort of. They’re not quite the kind you sit on and fly around with, although they do have the amazing power to make things move.
Meet the Magnetic Carpet. ⬇ 🧲
The Magnetic Carpet is an experimental material by Ahmet Demirörs, Sophia Ganzeboom and Sümeyye Aykut at Complex Materials Group at ETH Zurich.
It is a reactive surface with tiny magnetic hairs. Inspired by cilia, nature’s smallest movers, they interact with objects on their surface.
They’re soft and flexible and they can bend and turn individually. These tiny hairs are made of soft silicone with powder of neodymium iron boron inside.
The carpet hairs are actually only 2.5mm tall. But what makes them move?
Magnets under the surface activate the hairs. Each hair independently reacts to the magnetic forces by bending down or stretching up. This can be used to move objects around.
🕹️ Try it out yourself here: https://futureofmaterials.com/en/materials/magnetic-carpet/#Properties (scroll down).
Magnetic carpets transport solids with finesse. They sort, separate, and even move uphill!
Further to their stellar resume, magnetic carpets can also transport liquids. Slowly but steadily – like natural cilia.
What does the future hold for magnetic carpets? Will they give rise to a new industrial hybrid, like a self-sorting conveyor belt, or is their true calling yet to be revealed? Do these wiggly, willful surfaces go beyond the domestic bliss of a self-cleaning carpet?
Want to learn more about magnetic carpets?
Check out our article: https://futureofmaterials.com/en/materials/magnetic-carpet/
Got questions? Reach out and let the magnetic conversation flow!