In a new publication, Principal Investigator Eva Blasco, Cluster Alumnus Christoph Spiegel, and H. B. Duc Tran developed a new class of smart hydrogel inks based on OEGMA for 4D microprinting. They created materials with tunable thermoresponsive behavior across a broad temperature range (33–66 °C) by combining OEGMA with MEO2MA and HEMA, surpassing traditional systems. Using two-photon laser printing, the researchers produced precise 3D microstructures that change shape predictably and reversibly with temperature. This breakthrough opens new possibilities for soft microrobotics, smart sensors, and biomedical microdevices.
