Liquid metal

About: Liquid metal is a research topic. Over the lifetime, 6947 publications have been published within this topic receiving 77785 citations. The topic is also known as: liquid alloy & liquid metal alloy.

Functional liquid metal nanoparticles produced by liquid-based nebulization

Abstract: Functional liquid metal nanoparticles (NPs), produced from eutectic alloys of gallium, promise new horizons in the fields of sensors, microfluidics, flexible electronics, catalysis, and biomedicine. Here, the development of a vapor cavity generating ultrasonic platform for nebulizing liquid metal within aqueous media for the one-step production of stable and functional liquid metal NPs is shown. The size distribution of the NPs is fully characterized and it is demonstrated that various macro and small molecules can also be grafted onto these liquid metal NPs during the liquid-based nebulization process. The cytotoxicity of the NPs grafted with different molecules is further explored. Moreover, it is shown that it is possible to control the thickness of the oxide layer on the produced NPs using electrochemistry that can be embedded within the platform. It is envisaged that this platform can be adapted as a cost-effective and versatile device for the rapid production of functional liquid metal NPs for future liquid metal-based optical, electronic, catalytic, and biomedical applications.

A Pressure Responsive Fluidic Microstrip Open Stub Resonator Using a Liquid Metal Alloy

Abstract: This letter describes a fluidic microstrip bandstop filter with transmission properties that change in discrete states. The filter consists of a liquid metal alloy - eutectic gallium indium (EGaIn) - as the conductive component in microfluidic channels. The fluidity of EGaIn allows the open stub resonator of the filter to change its length by flowing in response to an applied pressure. A series of posts in the channel defines the length of the stub filled by the metal and dictates the pressure needed for the liquid metal to flow and thereby extend the stub length. The frequency response of the filter changes in response to the changes in the length of the resonator stub. This approach is a simple method for creating tunable filters and impedance matching sections using soft materials that change dimensions in response to pressure.

Channelless Fabrication for Large‐Scale Preparation of Room Temperature Liquid Metal Droplets

Abstract: The room-temperature liquid metal (RTLM), which is far from being fully exploited, is emerging as an ideal material for fabricating micro-droplets owing to its strong surface tension and easy phase control property. In order to find out a low-cost and technically simple way for quickly preparing metal particles in large-scale, here a channelless fabrication method based on stream jetting and self breaking up mechanisms of the RTLM when injected into and interact with the matching solution was proposed. Various typical factors on influencing the droplets generation behavior were experimentally investigated and clarified, such as the effects of the aperture size of the injection needle, the density, viscosity of the liquids and surfactants etc. Further, as an illustration of the flexibility of the present method, the direct construction of a three-dimensional porous metal block with foam-structures inside was also demonstrated. This study opened an extremely simple way for large scale fabrication of liquid metal micro-droplets and particles which has rather important practical values. It also suggests a highly efficient approach for visualizing and investigating the fundamental mechanisms of fluids interactions between RTLM and general solution.

Rayleigh–Bénard convection in liquid metal layers under the influence of a vertical magnetic field

Abstract: The influence of a vertical magnetic field on the integral heat transfer and the temporal dynamics of liquid metal Rayleigh–Benard convection is studied in an experiment using a small Prandtl number (Pr≈0.02) sodium potassium alloy Na22Kr78 as a test fluid. The test section is a rectangular box of large aspect ratio 20 : 10 : 1 that covers a parameter range of Rayleigh numbers, 103