Shape Up!

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In this activity (pages 8-9), learners investigate the properties of smart materials, which are materials that respond to things that happen around them. Learners train a piece of smart material (Nitinol) to adopt a particular shape. Learners discover that when the Nitinol wire is heated enough, its atoms can move around enough to "reset" its memory. This makes it possible to train the material to have a particular shape. Safety note: Young learners should have adult supervision. Be very careful with the flame and hot wire. [Activity is publicly available through a web crawler capture on Archive.org.]

Quick Guide

Preparation Time:
Under 5 minutes
Learning Time:
10 to 30 minutes
Estimated Materials Cost:
$5 - $10 per student
Age Range:
Ages 8 - adult
Resource Types:
Activity, Experiment/Lab Activity
Language:
English

Materials List (per student)

Keywords

Subjects

  • Engineering and Technology
    • Engineering
      • Metallurgy and Materials Engineering
  • Physical Sciences
    • Heat and Thermodynamics
      • Heat and Temperature
    • Chemistry
      • Chemical Bonding
    • States of Matter
      • Solids
    • Structure and Properties of Matter
      • Atomic Structure

Audience

To use this activity, learners need to:

  • see
  • touch

Learning styles supported:

  • Involves hands-on or lab activities

Other

Components that are part of this resource:

Access Rights:

  • Free access

By:

  • Jordan, Catherine

Rights:

Funding Source:

  • NSF Grant DMR, 1120296