Since actuators based on phase change materials (paraffin) can simultaneously produce large stroke length and large force due to thermal expansion, but the low thermal conductivity of paraffin requires high power input and long actuation time, in the current study, the graphene oxide (GO) doped paraffin dynamic actuator addressed the key challenges in the design of thermal phase change actuators.
Thermal conductivity and light absorbing were increased, and the response time was reduced compared to the standard phase change actuator designed with metal heating resistors. The thermal properties of GO–paraffin composites with varied loading amount were characterized to confirm the optimal loading amount of 1.0 percent. A multicell phase change actuator was integrated into a digital micromirror controlled optical system. A series of photothermally driven refreshable patterns were generated and confirmed with infrared imaging. (publisher abstract modified)