Material Strongly Deformed by Magnetic Field

Materials scientists are always looking for better ways to transform one form of energy into another. In the 11 March Physical Review Letters, theorists predict that a material containing nanoscale regions of a different atomic structure could respond to a magnetic field by changing shape, perhaps stretching 100 times more than traditional materials. Such materials, or cousins that respond to other fields, could be used in devices that sense fields or drive mechanical motion.