Everyone has heard of AI, and it is present in our conversations and many aspects of our daily lives.

Israeli technology is taking AI beyond the digital world and is creating smart, responsive material that will react to stimuli in a lifelike way.

This technology is poised to revolutionize sectors from robotics to healthcare and beyond.

Researchers at Ben-Gurion University of the Negev’s Physical AI (PAI) Lab, led by Dr. Aslan Miriyev, are developing multi-functional material sensors that behave like natural systems, expanding the possibilities of physical AI.

For instance, the technology could be used to create artificial skin that reacts the way our skin does or softer, more lifelike creatures that can sense their world not just digitally but physically.

Robots will not only behave according to how they have been programmed but will interact and respond to their world physically.

Scientists combine physical structures with computational intelligence to develop materials that react to their environment.

Dr. Miriyev’s team has achieved a significant breakthrough by developing 3D-printable high-mixed-ionic-electronic conductivity composite materials (ISMCs) that exhibit multi-functionality.

The materials can be produced through 3D printing and are developed with many functions.

Dr. Miriyev said, “These bio-analogous sensors have vast potential applications in fields requiring precise and multifunctional sensing capabilities.”

He continued, “The possibilities are extensive, from robotics, where they can contribute to more lifelike and responsive interactions, to healthcare, where they could be used in advanced diagnostic tools.”

Dr. Miriyev added, “Our ISMC-based precisely 3D-printable multifunctional sensors can significantly enhance how we approach sensory applications in various fields.”

To produce these materials, a precise type of 3D printing has been developed to create these multi-functional sensors.

Dr. Sergey Nechausov, whose research developed the printing process, said, “Thanks to the ISMCs’ chemical composition and advanced photorheological behavior, we can precisely 3D-print multifunctional sensors of almost any shape.”

He added, “Such sensors can operate under both AC and DC, and their ability to provide precise, distinct responses to multiple stimuli makes them highly versatile. Our sensors enable smart systems to interact with their environment in more complex and nuanced ways.”

Image - Reuters