Silvain Michel

Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Science and Technology

Papers

Total Citations

121

H-Index

About

Silvain Michel is a materials scientist and engineer whose research sits at the exciting intersection of soft robotics, flexible electronics, and smart materials. His work focuses primarily on the development of functional elastomer-based composites for sensing applications, with a particular emphasis on enabling next-generation robotic systems to perceive and respond to their environments. Michel's most significant contributions center on piezoresistive sensor technologies for soft robotics. His pioneering work on silicone elastomer fiber composites incorporating conductive fillers such as carbon black has advanced the design of strain sensors capable of withstanding the extreme elongations demanded by robotic applications — a challenge that requires carefully balancing electrical sensitivity with mechanical compliance. His most-cited paper on this topic (2020, 66 citations) addressed a critical trade-off: the stiffening effects that conductive fillers introduce into otherwise compliant polymer matrices. Beyond material design, Michel has made important strides in manufacturing scalability, demonstrating that injection molding of liquid silicone can produce sensorized robotic skin suitable for industrial-scale production. His research on capacitance-based feedback systems for dielectric elastomers further underscores his breadth across actuation and sensing domains. With over 120 combined citations, his body of work is shaping the future of tactile robotics and wearable sensing systems.