Self-regulated underwater phototaxis of a photoresponsive hydrogel-based phototactic vehicle

Guodong Hou; Xu Zhang; Feihong Du; Yadong Wu; Xing Zhang; Zhijie Lei; Wei Lu; Feiyu Zhang; Guang Yang; Huamiao Wang; Zhenyu Liu; Rong Wang; Qi Ge; Jiangping Chen; Guang Meng; Nicholas X Fang; Xiaoshi Qian

doi:10.1038/s41565-023-01490-4

Self-regulated underwater phototaxis of a photoresponsive hydrogel-based phototactic vehicle

Nat Nanotechnol. 2024 Jan;19(1):77-84. doi: 10.1038/s41565-023-01490-4. Epub 2023 Aug 21.

Authors

Guodong Hou^{1

2

3

4}, Xu Zhang¹, Feihong Du^{1

2

3}, Yadong Wu⁵, Xing Zhang¹, Zhijie Lei^{1

2

3}, Wei Lu^{1

2

3}, Feiyu Zhang^{1

2

3}, Guang Yang³, Huamiao Wang¹, Zhenyu Liu⁴, Rong Wang⁶, Qi Ge⁶, Jiangping Chen^{1

3}, Guang Meng^{1

2}, Nicholas X Fang⁷, Xiaoshi Qian^{8

9

10}

Affiliations

¹ State Key Laboratory of Mechanical System and Vibration, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
² Interdisciplinary Research Centre for Engineering Science, School of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
³ Institute of Refrigeration and Cryogenics, School of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
⁴ Institute of Engineering Thermophysics, School of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
⁵ Institute of Aerospace Propulsion, School of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China.
⁶ Department of Mechanical and Energy Engineering, Southern University of Science and Technology, Shenzhen, China.
⁷ Department of Mechanical Engineering, The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong, China. nicxfang@hku.hk.
⁸ State Key Laboratory of Mechanical System and Vibration, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China. xsqian@sjtu.edu.cn.
⁹ Interdisciplinary Research Centre for Engineering Science, School of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China. xsqian@sjtu.edu.cn.
¹⁰ Institute of Refrigeration and Cryogenics, School of Mechanical Engineering, Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Shanghai, China. xsqian@sjtu.edu.cn.

PMID: 37605045
DOI: 10.1038/s41565-023-01490-4

Abstract

Incorporating a negative feedback loop in a synthetic material to enable complex self-regulative behaviours akin to living organisms remains a design challenge. Here we show that a hydrogel-based vehicle can follow the directions of photonic illumination with directional regulation inside a constraint-free, fluidic space. By manipulating the customized photothermal nanoparticles and the microscale pores in the polymeric matrix, we achieved strong chemomechanical deformation of the soft material. The vehicle swiftly assumes an optimal pose and creates directional flow around itself, which it follows to achieve robust full-space phototaxis. In addition, this phototaxis enables a series of complex underwater locomotions. We demonstrate that this versatility is generated by the synergy of photothermofluidic interactions resulting in closed-loop self-control and fast reconfigurability. The untethered, electronics-free, ambient-powered hydrogel vehicle manoeuvres through obstacles agilely, following illumination cues of moderate intensities, similar to that of natural sunlight.

Abstract

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