Abstract
By definition and general agreement, smart materials are materials that have properties which may be altered in a controlled fashion by stimuli, such as stress, temperature, moisture, pH, and electric or magnetic fields. There are numerous types of smart materials, some of which are already common. Examples include piezoelectric materials, which produce a voltage when stress is applied or vice versa, shape memory alloys or shape memory polymers which are thermoresponsive, and pH sensitive polymers which swell or shrink as a response to change in pH. Thus, smart materials respond to stimuli by altering one or more of their properties. Smart behaviour occurs when a material can sense some stimulus from its environment and react to it in a useful, reliable, reproducible, and usually reversible manner. These properties have a beneficial application in various fields including dentistry. Shape memory alloys, zirconia, and smartseal are examples of materials exhibiting a smart behavior in dentistry. There is a strong trend in material science to develop and apply these intelligent materials. These materials would potentially allow new and groundbreaking dental therapies with a significantly enhanced clinical outcome of treatments.
Highlights
Materials science is not what it used to be
Smart materials can be defined as designed materials that have one or more properties that can be significantly changed in a controlled fashion by external stimuli, such as stress, temperature, moisture, pH, and electric or magnetic fields [1]
The term “smart material” or “smart behaviour” in the field of dentistry was probably first used in connection with NickelTitanium (NiTi) alloys, or shape memory alloys (SMAs), which are used as orthodontic wires
Summary
Materials science is not what it used to be. Traditionally materials used in dentistry were designed to be passive and inert, that is, to exhibit little or no interaction with body tissues and fluids. Many of the advanced materials at the forefront of materials science are functional: they are required to perform things and to undergo purposeful change. They play an active part in the way the structure or device works. Smart materials can be defined as designed materials that have one or more properties that can be significantly changed in a controlled fashion by external stimuli, such as stress, temperature, moisture, pH, and electric or magnetic fields [1]. These materials are referred to as responsive materials. This paper aims to describe the various materials in dentistry that exhibit some sort of smart behaviour
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