(Nanowerk Spotlight) Compared to creating static objects with 3D printing, 4D printing systems add time as the fourth dimension to 3D printing: 4D printing allows a 3D printed structure to change its ...

4D printing is real, happening now, and has the potential to shape the world. Self-assembly in 4D printing uses materials responding to external stimuli. A regular 3D printer can be used to create 4D ...

Three-dimensional printing, also known as additive manufacturing, takes a digital blueprint and turns it into a physical object using computer-aided design (CAD). A repeating 2D structure is built up, ...

The days when 3D printing was simply dreamed about are far behind us. Today, the process of creating a three-dimensional object via successive layers of materials is a mainstream activity—from ...

Molecular self-assembly, whereby molecules position themselves into defined arrangements, is commonplace in biological systems and nanotechnology. But researchers at MIT are working on so called "4D ...

The basic principles of design are being transformed by exciting new realities in materials and production methods that borrow principles from nano and bio technologies, but at a macro scale. While ...

Using a 3D printer, people can already determine the length, width and depth of an object that they create. Thanks to research being conducted at the University of Colorado, Boulder, however, a fourth ...