Robot prototype forms a UV sensor from chemicals circulating through its body

Researchers at the University of Tartu and the Italian Institute of Technology built a moth-shaped robot that forms a new ultraviolet sensor from chemicals circulating through its plastic body, New Atlas reports. UV light triggers a reaction that creates conductive material in a selected patch; embedded gold wires detect its response to later exposures. The sensor worked after four months in storage, but takes about five minutes to settle after each UV flash. Researchers control fluid filling and sensor placement with a stencil. The irreversible process grows sensing material, while the wiring must already be installed.