A physicist at the University of Virginia, Charlottesville, invented a new material, a type of silicone rubber that is both rigid and fluid, called a “viscoelastic” solid, that can act like a memory foam, but with stretch and bounce. He foresees that it may have applications as a packaging tape, as a shoe insole, as padding for prosthetics, as a handle material for canes, crutches, and more.
The invention that Lou Bloomfield, a professor of physics in the College of Arts & Sciences, calls “Vistik,” is the result of thousands of experiments conducted over four years. An interesting characteristic of the material is that while it sticks to itself, it does not stick to other materials and objects, and, dust and dirt can be brushed off or washed away, allowing the material to easily re-adhere.
Vistik also regains its original shape after being compressed or imprinted. For example, a Vistik ball – which bounces like a super ball because of its elasticity – is soft enough that it can be squeezed into a flat disk that will slowly return to its round shape once the pressure is off.
That compliant, adaptive characteristic likely makes it an ideal material as a contact point for prosthetics.
“It takes an imprint, conforming to the shape of, for example, a foot, but then returns to its original shape, which can be flat or any shape we design,” Bloomfield said. “The material can even take imprints as fine as fingerprints.”
