Introduction: A Lantern that Evolves with Purpose
Engineers at North Carolina State University have unveiled a shape-shifting structure inspired by a traditional paper lantern. Published in Nature Materials, the study demonstrates a single, lightweight polymer sheet that can be programmed to assume multiple stable three-dimensional shapes. The capability to store and release elastic energy as it morphs could unlock a new generation of adaptive machines in robotics, filtration, and responsive systems.
The Lantern Design: From Flat Sheet to 3D Forms
The researchers began with a thin polymer sheet cut into a diamond-shaped parallelogram. Evenly spaced slits create narrow ribbons connected by solid strips at the top and bottom. When the ends are joined, the sheet folds into a hollow, spherical structure reminiscent of a traditional Chinese lantern. This configuration is bistable: it remains in its lantern form until a sufficient compression triggers a sudden transition to a second stable shape, described by the team as resembling a spinning top.
As the device returns to its original lantern shape, it rapidly releases stored elastic energy in a process the researchers call snapping morphogenesis. By combining twisting and folding, the team produced a variety of additional shapes, including configurations with four stable states. The ability to toggle between shapes and harness the released energy creates a versatile platform for programmable mechanics.
Remote Control Through Magnetism
For practical manipulation, a thin magnetic film is applied to the lantern’s lower strip. An external magnetic field can remotely trigger twisting or compression without direct contact. In demonstrations, magnetized lanterns acted as gentle grippers capable of catching and releasing live fish without harm. They also served as underwater fluid-control valves and mechanisms to reopen collapsed tubes, each leveraging rapid energy release to achieve motion and function.
The observed movements resemble lifelike breathing more than mechanical action, underscoring the potential for highly adaptable motion profiles in soft robotics and smart devices. Video footage accompanying the study shows lanterns snapping and twisting with precise, repeatable motion, highlighting the repeatability and reliability of the design.
Programming Shape and Energy: A Predictive Model
Key to the lantern’s versatility is a mathematical model that links geometry to stored elastic energy. This model enables designers to tailor the stability and power output of each configuration. Lead author Yaoye Hong notes that the framework lets researchers specify the target shape, stability level, and the energy that will be liberated when the stored potential is converted to kinetic energy. In effect, geometry becomes the primary control mechanism for programming the device’s behavior.
Toward Shape-Morphing Machines
Each lantern unit is reprogrammable and remotely triggerable, making it an attractive building block for broader smart material systems. According to Jie Yin, a professor of mechanical and aerospace engineering at NC State, future work could assemble these units into two-dimensional and three-dimensional architectures for wide-ranging applications in shape-morphing metamaterials and robotics.
Potential applications span adaptive robots capable of crawling, swimming, or grasping with magnetically controlled limbs, to practical devices such as sensors and filters that unfold to regulate fluid flow. These multi-stable structures promise fast, repeatable transitions and low energy input for reconfiguration, which is essential for field-deployed systems and autonomous platforms.
A New Generation of Smart Materials
Multistability—stability across several distinct states—has become a strategic focus in smart materials research. By integrating physics with engineering, this study transforms a seemingly simple lantern-like device into a powerful tool for advancing shape-morphing robotics. The NC State team demonstrates how magnetism, geometry, and elastic energy can combine to produce rapid, repeatable motion without complex actuation schemes.
The work signals the dawn of an all-new generation of adaptive machines, where programmable, magnetically controlled structures could form the backbone of soft robotics, autonomous systems, and responsive infrastructure. The paper, titled “Shape-Shifting ‘Chinese Lantern’ Structure Could Pave the Way for the Next Generation of Adaptive Machines,” was published in Nature Materials on October 10, 2025.
