4D Printing of Polymer‐Dispersed Liquid Crystal Elastomers toward Tunable Vibration Isolation and Cushioning Properties

Abstract The synthetic complexity and high cost of raw materials make large‐scale manufacturing of pure liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs) challenging, greatly limiting their practical applications. Although 3D printing serves as a means to fabricate LCEs components, the mainstream 3D‐printed LCEs are often thin‐walled structures. Here, this study proposes 4D printing of polymer‐dispersed LCEs by incorporating cryogenically ground LCEs particles as reinforcing phases into the acrylic resin matrix. The composite materials retain nematic‐transition characteristics of LCEs while also exhibiting shape memory properties. The influence of LCEs particles on the shape memory and viscoelastic properties of the composite materials is investigated. By programming the shape and tuning the temperature of the composites, the 4D printed quasi‐zero stiffness vibration isolator demonstrated tunable and superior vibration isolation performance in the low‐frequency range while maintaining low mass. The approach provides an efficient pathway to promote the practical application of LCEs in vibration isolation, energy absorption, and other fields.