Polymers become reusable 3D displays
2024-08-13
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Science and Technology Daily, Beijing, August 11 (Reporter Zhang Jiaxin) A team from Dartmouth College and Southern Methodist University in the United States has developed a new technology that uses a dedicated light projector to "print" 2D and 3D images in any polymer containing photosensitive chemical additives. This image will remain in the polymer and disappear when heated, and the polymer can be reused. The research results were published in the latest issue of the journal Chemistry.
The light-sensitive chemical "switch" turns polymers such as acrylic cubes into display materials. Made from azobenzene and a boron difluoride compound, once bound to the polymer, the switch reacts to red and blue light from a projector. The red light acts like ink, activating chemical additives to create images, while the blue light can be used to erase images.
A projector shines light patterns at multiple angles into the treated polymer. Where these patterns intersect, light-sensitive chemical additives are activated, creating a 3D image. Creating a 3D projection from a 2D image, such as a chest X-ray, means projecting slices of the original image into a polymer cube until the slices combine to form a complete 3D image.
In short, the researchers used light to "write" and heat or light to "erase," creating high-resolution images in polymers of varying thicknesses, up to about 15 centimeters.
This is called reversible 3D printing. People can choose polymers with excellent optical properties and enhance their properties using chemical "switches". Using this new technology, suitable plastic polymers can be transformed into reusable 3D displays.
【Editor-in-Chief’s Comments】
At first glance, it sounds like magic; but if you take a closer look, it's all scientific principles. This technology actually uses the properties of photosensitive chemicals to make it react with light or heat to create or erase three-dimensional images. From the results, it is similar to the "3D projector" technology, which can present three-dimensional images in a special way. If this technology is mature enough and low-cost in the future, its application scenarios may not be limited to hospitals. This novel display technology may be useful in scenarios where objects need to be displayed, knowledge needs to be imparted, and visual entertainment is needed, such as schools, museums, tourist attractions, shops, factories, etc.
