Artificial Heart Based on Electrically Controlled Non-Toxic Liquid Metal Pump

A novel approach is introduced to realize an artificial heart based on redistribution of charges on the surface of liquid metal droplets. The unique feature is that liquid metal droplets can be shaped into various forms when a driving voltage is applied at a specific condition. In addition, the deformed liquid metal droplets are easily restored to their original spherical shape by eliminating the driving voltage. The motions of electrically controlled liquid metal droplets make it possible to mimic the heartbeat. The heartbeat motions are precisely controlled by the modulation of the driving voltage amplitude and frequency. The maximum flow rate is approximate to 70 mu L min(-1) at 1.5 V-pp and 2 Hz square wave. To the best of our knowledge, this is the instance mimicking the artificial heart based on the electrically controlled liquid metal droplets. The experimental results reveal that the proposed deformation mechanism creates new opportunities in the field of soft robotics.