Magnetic Shape Memory: Magnetically Addressable Shape‐Memory and Stiffening in a Composite Elastomer (Adv. Mater. 29/2019)

The design of shape-memory polymers is usually based on a thermally triggered phase transition. In article number 1900561, Paolo Testa, Eric R. Dufresne, Laura J. Heyderman, and co-workers demonstrate a new kind of shape-memory material created by embedding magneto-rheological fluid droplets into a polymer matrix. The resulting material displays an athermal shape-memory mechanism solely induced by magnetic fields, which can be of advantage for applications in areas such as medicine, aerospace, electronics, and robotics.