Liquid crystal elastomers (LCEs) have long held significant promise as materials for artificial muscles and smart actuators. Recent advancements in this field have introduced innovative LCE structures at various scales, resulting in novel properties and functionalities that further accentuate their actuation advantages, bolstering their potential as future soft actuation systems. The ongoing pursuit of enhanced performance and functionality in LCE actuators, essential for advancing them towards superior material-based machines and devices, is intricately linked to the understanding of the fundamental structure-property-function relationships. This review provides a perspective on these relationships across multiple structural levels, encompassing chemical structures, mesophase structures, and micro-to-macroscale programmed structures. It delves into the impact of various LCE structures on key actuation-related properties, actuation features, and functionalities. This review aspires to provide valuable insights into the design of high-performance LCE actuators, the development of exceptional actuation modes and behaviors, and the expansion of achievable functionality.

中文翻译：

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用于驱动的​​液晶弹性体：结构-性能-功能关系的视角


长期以来，液晶弹性体（LCE）作为人造肌肉和智能执行器的材料有着巨大的前景。该领域的最新进展引入了各种规模的创新LCE结构，产生了新颖的特性和功能，进一步凸显了它们的驱动优势，增强了它们作为未来软驱动系统的潜力。对 LCE 执行器增强性能和功能的持续追求，对于将其推向基于材料的卓越机器和设备至关重要，这与对基本结构-性能-功能关系的理解有着错综复杂的联系。这篇综述提供了跨多个结构水平的这些关系的视角，包括化学结构、中间相结构和微观到宏观的程序结构。它深入研究了各种 LCE 结构对关键驱动相关特性、驱动特性和功能的影响。本次综述旨在为高性能 LCE 执行器的设计、特殊驱动模式和行为的开发以及可实现功能的扩展提供有价值的见解。