Michael Dickey
Alcoa Professor
- Phone: 919.513.0273
- Email: mddickey@ncsu.edu
- Office: Engineering Building I (EB1) 2088G
- Website: https://www.cbe.ncsu.edu/dickeygroup/
The Dickey group is studying new ways to pattern, actuate, and control soft materials (gels, polymers, liquid metals). A common theme of our projects is the importance of thin films, interfacial phenomena, and microfabrication. Our approach is to (i) elucidate the fundamental properties of materials such that they can be harnessed in a useful manner, and (ii) develop new, unconventional approaches to fabricate, actuate, and assemble these materials. Applications of the research include patterning, 3D printing, stretchable / soft electronics, self-folding, actuation of soft robotics, wearable electronics, energy harvesting devices, reconfigurable circuits, and microfluidics..
We are also interested in photo-curable polymeric materials, particularly those used in both photo- and imprint lithography. The properties (curing speed, sensitivity, elemental composition, dielectric constant, mechanical properties, viscosity, etc.) of these materials must be tailored and optimized depending on the application.
Research Interests
Michael Dickey’s research focuses on Focus Areas – Soft Materials, Interfaces, Microfabrication, Liquid Metals, Polymers / Gels, Stretchable & Wearable Electronics, Energy Harvesting, Soft Robots.
Education
| Degree | Program | School | Year |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ph.D. | Chemical Engineering | University of Texas at Austin | 2006 |
| MS | Chemical Engineering | University of Texas at Austin | 2003 |
| BS | Chemical Engineering | Georgia Institute of Technology | 1999 |
Honors and Awards
- 2020 | Alumni Association Outstanding Research Award
- 2020 | Outstanding Research Mentor Award
- 2020 | American Chemical Society Distinguished Speaker of the Year, NC Chapter
- 2019 | Distinguished Leadership and Contributions to Scientific Research Award, Sigma Xi
- 2017 | Member: Defense Science Study Group (DSSG 2018-2019)
- 2017 | Alumni Distinguished Undergraduate Professor (NC State)
- 2017 | Alcoa Foundation Distinguished Engineering Research Award
- 2016 | Curtis W. McGraw Research Award
- 2016 | SPIE Nanoengineering Award
- 2014 | Selectee: NAE Frontiers of Engineering Research Symposium
- 2013 | ASEE Southeastern Section New Faculty Research Award
- 2013 | Selectee: NAE Frontiers of Engineering Education Symposium
- 2013 | University Faculty Scholar
- 2012 | Outstanding Teacher Award – Member of the Academy of Outstanding Teachers at NC State University
- 2011 | Sigma Xi Faculty Award
- 2010 | National Science Foundation CAREER Award
Publications
- A Soft Gripper with Granular Jamming and Electroadhesive Properties
- Piskarev, Y., Devincenti, A., Ramachandran, V., Bourban, P.-E., Dickey, M. D., Shintake, J., & Floreano, D. (2023, March 16), ADVANCED INTELLIGENT SYSTEMS, Vol. 3. https://doi.org/10.1002/aisy.202200409
- An atomically smooth container: Can the native oxide promote supercooling of liquid gallium?
- Joshipura, I. D., Nguyen, C. K., Quinn, C., Yang, J., Morales, D. H., Santiso, E., … Dickey, M. D. (2023), ISCIENCE, 26(4). https://doi.org/10.1016/j.isci.2023.106493
- Breathable Encapsulated Liquid Metal Foam-Based Soft Stress Sensor
- Xu, J., Wang, Z., Wang, X., Wu, Y., Xing, R., Yu, T., … Yang, J. (2023, January 25), ADVANCED MATERIALS TECHNOLOGIES, Vol. 1. https://doi.org/10.1002/admt.202201193
- Compositional Design of Surface Oxides in Gallium-Indium Alloys
- Farrell, Z. J., Jacob, A. R., Truong, V. K., Elbourne, A., Kong, W., Hsiao, L., … Tabor, C. (2023, January 11), CHEMISTRY OF MATERIALS, Vol. 1. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemmater.2c02696
- Controllable Flow and Manipulation of Liquid Metals
- He, Y., You, J., Dickey, M. D., & Wang, X. (2023, October 20), ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS, Vol. 10. https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202309614
- Convex Microarrays-Based Liquid Metal Soft Piezoresistive Stress Sensor With High Sensitivity and Large Measurement Range
- Wu, Y., Li, S., Zhao, Z., Zhang, D., Xiong, X., Yu, T., … Yang, J. (2023), IEEE SENSORS JOURNAL, 23(9), 9176–9182. https://doi.org/10.1109/JSEN.2023.3260029
- Enhanced Triboelectric Charge Stability by Air-Stable Radicals
- Im, S., Frey, E., Lacks, D. J., Genzer, J., & Dickey, M. D. (2023, September 7), ADVANCED SCIENCE, Vol. 9. https://doi.org/10.1002/advs.202304459
- Flexible-to-Stretchable Mechanical and Electrical Interconnects
- Erlenbach, S., Mondal, K., Ma, J., Neumann, T. V., Ma, S., Holbery, J. D., & Dickey, M. D. (2023, January 4), ACS APPLIED MATERIALS & INTERFACES, Vol. 1. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsami.2c14260
- Gallium Liquid Metal: Nanotoolbox for Antimicrobial Applications
- Truong, V. K., Hayles, A., Bright, R., Luu, T. Q., Dickey, M. D., Kalantar-Zadeh, K., & Vasilev, K. (2023, July 28), ACS NANO, Vol. 7. https://doi.org/10.1021/acsnano.3c06486
- Ir-Ru Electrocatalysts Embedded in N-Doped Carbon Matrix for Proton Exchange Membrane Water Electrolysis
- Huynh, T. B. N., Song, J., Bae, H. E., Kim, Y., Dickey, M. D. D., Sung, Y.-E., … Kwon, O. J. (2023, March 28), ADVANCED FUNCTIONAL MATERIALS, Vol. 3. https://doi.org/10.1002/adfm.202301999
