A Kind of New Material May be Used to Body Armor

Department of Materials Science and Engineering，Johns Hopkins University has designed a new material at the microscopic level, which it calls liquid crystal elastomer(LCE).

The liquid crystal elastomer material has its excellent impact tolerance, can bear the impact from the object with a speed of 35 km/h which weigh to 1.8 kg to 6.8 kg. And LCE is comparable to metal in terms of weight, hardness and reusability.

How does LCE work in Body armor?

During the impact, LCE can store the impact energy by deforming, and after the impact is over, it can release the stored energy and return to its original shape. That means it's a reusable material that won't fail if it's used to make body armor, which is important for improving soldiers' ability to survive on the battlefield.