For the first time, scientists have created a permanently magnetic liquid. These liquid droplets can morph into various shapes and be externally manipulated to move around, according to a new study.
We typically imagine magnets as being solid, said senior author Thomas Russell, a distinguished professor of polymer science and engineering at the University of Massachusetts Amherst. But now we know that “we can make magnets that are liquid and they could conform to different shapes — and the shapes are really up to you.”
The liquid droplets can change shape from a sphere to a cylinder to a pancake, he told Live Science. “We can [even] make it look like a sea urchin if we wanted.” [9 Cool Facts About Magnets]
Russell and his team created these liquid magnets by accident while experimenting with 3D printing liquids at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (where Russell is also a visiting faculty scientist). The goal was to create materials that are solid but have characteristics of liquids for various energy applications.