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| Thermo-mechanical Coupling Behaviors of Liquid Crystal Elastomer-Shape Memory Polymer Composite Structures |
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Abstract Liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs) exhibit rapid response, reversible deformation, and large actuation, making them promising for applications in soft robotics. However, their low modulus limits their ability to provide stable stiffness. In contrast, shape memory polymers (SMPs) can undergo significant changes in modulus with temperature variations and exhibit shape fixity ability. However, they lack reversible shape-changing capabilities. Therefore, combining LCEs and SMPs into a composite structure is considered as a promising design strategy to simultaneously achieve reversible actuation and shape locking. This paper verifies the feasibility of the proposed approach through numerical simulations. First, a thermo-mechanical-order coupling constitutive model for LCEs is established to describe the shape changes caused by the nematic-isotropic phase transition during temperature changes. A viscoelastic constitutive model based on the glass transition mechanism is further developed to capture the shape memory effect in amorphous polymers. The constitutive models are then implemented into finite element software. The study further investigates the influence of the nematic-isotropic phase transition region and the glass transition region on reversible deformation and shape locking, demonstrating the potential of LCE-SMP bilayer composite structures for realizing complex actuation behaviors.
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Received: 20 January 2026
Published: 28 June 2026
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2026, Vol. 47 
