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
- Connecting the Dots: Sintering of Liquid Metal Particles for Soft and Stretchable Conductors
- Lee, S., Jaseem, S. A., Atar, N., Wang, M., Kim, J. Y., Zare, M., … Dickey, M. D. (2025, March 4), CHEMICAL REVIEWS, Vol. 3. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemrev.4c00850
- Multicomponent shape-memory microfibers electrospun with precisely tunable thermal triggers
- Shamsi, M., Tantorno, B., Dickey, M. D., & Spontak, R. J. (2025), COLLOIDS AND SURFACES A-PHYSICOCHEMICAL AND ENGINEERING ASPECTS, 711. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.colsurfa.2025.136382
- Roadmap on embodying mechano-intelligence and computing in functional materials and structures
- Alu, A., Arrieta, A. F., Del Dottore, E., Dickey, M., Ferracin, S., Harne, R., … Wang, K. W. (2025). [Review of , ]. SMART MATERIALS AND STRUCTURES, 34(6). https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-665X/adb7aa
- Ultrarobust and Lightweight Electro-Pneumatic Actuators for Soft Robotics
- Yuan, Z., Li, J., Liu, L., Zhu, X., Wang, W., Dickey, M. D., … Chen, R. (2025), IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON ROBOTICS, 41, 2894–2910. https://doi.org/10.1109/TRO.2025.3559430
- pH-Switchable Multi-Enzyme-Mimicking via Liquid Metal Nanozyme
- Shen, Y., Xu, X., Xing, R., Wang, Y., Su, R., Kong, J., … Qi, W. (2025, May 26), SMALL, Vol. 5. https://doi.org/10.1002/smll.202502752
- 3D-Printing of Hierarchical Porous Copper-Based Metal–Organic-Framework Structures for Efficient Fixed-Bed Catalysts
- Xing, R., Huang, R., Su, R., Kong, J., Dickey, M. D., & Qi, W. (2024), Chem & Bio Engineering. https://doi.org/10.1021/cbe.4c00001
- 4D printing roadmap
- Bodaghi, M., Wang, L., Zhang, F., Liu, Y., Leng, J., Xing, R., … Zolfagharian, A. (2024), Smart Materials and Structures. https://doi.org/10.1088/1361-665X/ad5c22
- A Guide to Printed Stretchable Conductors
- Sakorikar, T., Mihaliak, N., Krisnadi, F., Ma, J., Kim, T.-il, Kong, M., … Dickey, M. D. (2024, January 30), CHEMICAL REVIEWS, Vol. 1. https://doi.org/10.1021/acs.chemrev.3c00569
- A highly conductive and ultra-stretchable polyaniline/cellulose nanocrystal/polyacrylamide hydrogel with hydrophobic associations for wearable strain sensors
- Rahmani, P., Shojaei, A., & Dickey, M. D. (2024, February 9), JOURNAL OF MATERIALS CHEMISTRY A, Vol. 2. https://doi.org/10.1039/D3TA07424B
- A soft magnetoelectric finger for robots' multidirectional tactile perception in non-visual recognition environments
- Xu, Y., Zhang, S., Li, S., Wu, Z., Li, Y., Li, Z., … Su, B. (2024), NPJ FLEXIBLE ELECTRONICS, 8(1). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41528-023-00289-6
