Tan Chin Tuan Seminar on Sustainable materials science – from nature’s grippers to innovation in robotics, biomedicine and space

04 Dec 2025 10.30 AM - 11.30 AM LT6 (North Spine, NS2-02-05) Current Students, Public

Professor Eduard Arzt

Scientific Director

INM – Leibniz Institute for New Materials, Saarbrücken, Germany 

This seminar will be chaired by Prof K Jimmy Hsia.

Seminar Abstract

This talk will track the path from biological evolution of gripping to sustainable solutions in a wide range of applications. The concept of micropatterning polymeric surfaces, inspired by the gecko foot, has become a powerful paradigm for creating and controlling glue-free adhesion between objects. Starting from the mechanics fundamentals of micropatterned contacts, we will describe their implementation in energy-free pick-and-place systems, e.g. for handling micro-LEDs or battery foils. Advanced subjects will include the release of micro-objects by miniaturized snap-through devices and the contribution of machine learning to gripping and handling. Promising clinical applications are the healing of perforated ear drums with restoration of hearing ability or the design of self-adhesive health monitoring systems. Our recent experiments simulate the impact and capture of uncooperative objects as a way to help retrieve debris in outer space.

Speaker's Biography 

Eduard Arzt is currently Tan Chin Tuan Engineering Fellow at NTU and affiliated faculty at the University of California San Diego. He is Scientific Director Emeritus of INM – Leibniz Institute for New Materials in Saarbrücken, a leading German materials research laboratory. Previously, he co-directed the Max Planck Institute for Metals Research in Stuttgart for almost two decades. A physics PhD from the University of Vienna, Austria, he performed research at Cambridge University, Stanford University, MIT, and the University of California. He is the recipient of the Leibniz Award, a Fellow of TMS and PI of several competitive European Research Council grants. He is member of various academies including the US National Academy of Engineering and the Leopoldina German National Academy of Sciences. Arzt is editor-in-chief of the leading review journal Progress in Materials Science and co-founder of a deep tech start-up.

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