Nanosecond pulsed laser induced efficient photophoresis actuating of graphene sponge

Photophoresis actuating shows great potentials in cross-scale light-driven manipulation and fuel-free flight due to efficient conversion of light-to-work. However, photophoresis actuating with rapid light response is rarely reported although it is important in light-driven manipulation. In this work, the pulsed laser induced photophoresis of graphene sponge material (PLPGS) is investigated by a homemade sensitive detection system, and the actuating force is measured quantitatively by an optical lever method. The macroscale graphene sponge material can be driven by a 3–5 ns single laser pulse reproducibly. The actuating force is 1.8 μN when the input laser pulse energy density is 4.0 mJ/cm2, and the PLPGS can be triggered by ultra-low laser pulse energy below 70 μJ/cm2. The PLPGS is proved to be quick-response, repeatable, low-energy, and non-destructive.