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World's First Self-Healing Electronic Skin Gives Robots the Power to Heal Themselves Underwater

Imagine an underwater robot or a diver's glove that can feel touch, detect damage, repair itself, and keep working without a battery. It may sound like science fiction, but researchers at the National University of Singapore (NUS) have developed exactly that.

Their new invention is called the Self-Healing Magnetoelectric Sensory System (SMES). This advanced electronic skin is designed to survive one of the toughest environments on Earth—underwater. Unlike traditional electronic sensors that stop working after being damaged, this new technology can detect injuries, heal itself, and continue operating without needing an external power source.

The breakthrough could transform the future of underwater robotics, diving equipment, wearable electronics, prosthetic limbs, and soft robots.

A Big Challenge for Underwater Electronics

Underwater environments are extremely difficult for electronic devices. Water pressure, sharp rocks, shells, and continuous movement can easily damage delicate sensors.

Today, underwater robots and divers rely on electronic sensors for navigation, communication, and object handling. However, these sensors have several major problems:

  • They are easily damaged.

  • They require batteries or external power.

  • Once punctured or cut, they usually stop working permanently.

  • Repairs underwater are almost impossible.

These limitations reduce the lifespan of underwater machines and can even create safety risks for divers.

To solve these problems, researchers led by Assistant Professor Tan Yu Jun from the Department of Mechanical Engineering at NUS designed a completely new type of sensor inspired by human skin.

Their research was published in the journal Advanced Materials on April 18, 2026.

Inspired by Human Skin

Human skin is incredibly intelligent.

It can sense a gentle touch, detect pain when injured, and gradually heal itself after being cut.

The researchers wanted electronic devices to have similar abilities.

Their SMES technology works much like living skin. It can:

  • Detect touch

  • Sense nearby objects

  • Recognize when it has been damaged

  • Repair itself automatically

  • Continue functioning both in air and underwater

This combination has never been achieved in a single underwater electronic device before.

How the Electronic Skin Works

The sensor consists of several flexible layers built from a soft, rubber-like material called an elastomer.

Inside this material are tiny liquid-metal conductors that remain flexible even when stretched or bent.

The sensor contains two important layers:

  • A damage-sensing layer

  • An electromagnetic sensing layer

The upper layer constantly checks whether the sensor has been punctured, scratched, or cut.

If damage occurs, its electrical resistance immediately increases.

This acts just like pain in human skin, warning the system that something is wrong.

Professor Tan explained that pain in our bodies is a protective alarm that helps prevent more serious injury. Their electronic skin gives underwater machines a similar warning system.

Healing Itself Like Living Tissue

The most impressive feature is its ability to heal itself.

The elastomer contains special molecular structures that naturally reconnect after being separated.

When two damaged surfaces touch each other again, these molecular bonds reform automatically.

As a result, the sensor repairs itself without needing replacement parts or human intervention.

For example:

  • After tiny needle punctures, the sensor recovers its original electrical performance within just a few seconds.

  • After larger cuts, gently pressing the damaged surfaces together starts the healing process.

  • Over time, the sensor completely restores its sensing ability.

This makes it far more durable than traditional electronic sensors.

Even Better Underwater

Self-healing materials usually struggle to repair themselves underwater because water interferes with chemical bonding.

Surprisingly, the new SMES performs exceptionally well underwater.

The researchers found that:

  • The material achieves 92% elastic recovery, meaning it almost completely returns to its original shape after stretching.

  • Under mild heating, it reaches about 82% healing efficiency in air after seven days.

  • Underwater, healing efficiency rises to nearly 100% after ten days.

Even after being submerged for long periods, the sensor continues detecting damage and restoring its mechanical strength.

This is a major achievement because underwater self-healing has remained one of the biggest challenges in materials science.

No Battery Required

Another remarkable feature is that the sensor powers itself.

Instead of using batteries, it generates electricity through electromagnetic induction, the same scientific principle used in electric generators and transformers.

Inside the sensor is:

  • A tiny magnet

  • A coil made from liquid-metal wire

Whenever someone touches the sensor or an object comes close, the magnet moves slightly relative to the coil.

This movement changes the magnetic field and automatically generates a small electrical voltage.

That electricity is enough for the sensor to detect both:

  • Touch, when pressure is applied.

  • Proximity, when an object comes close without touching.

Because it creates its own electricity, the system does not need an external power supply, making it ideal for underwater environments where replacing batteries is difficult.

Fast and Durable

The researchers tested the sensor extensively.

Its performance was impressive.

The sensor responds in about 41 milliseconds, roughly ten times faster than the blink of a human eye.

It also remained stable after 10,000 repeated operating cycles, showing that it can withstand years of regular use.

Even after staying underwater for 10 consecutive days, including in simulated seawater, its proximity sensing continued working reliably.

These tests demonstrate that the technology is robust enough for real-world underwater applications.

Smart Diving Gloves

To demonstrate practical use, the team created a smart diving glove equipped with the new electronic skin.

Each fingertip contains sensors that produce unique electrical signals for different hand gestures.

These signals are sent wirelessly through Bluetooth to a smartphone.

The glove recognizes five different commands:

  • Normal

  • Going Up

  • Going Down

  • Holding

  • Help

This allows divers to communicate important information silently while underwater, where speaking is impossible.

The glove also includes warning lights.

If serious damage is detected, red LEDs immediately illuminate, alerting the diver that the glove has been compromised.

A Smarter Underwater Robot Hand

The second prototype was an underwater robotic hand.

The robotic fingers use SMES sensors to grasp and carry objects safely underwater.

The system constantly monitors its own condition using colored LED indicators:

  • Green means everything is normal.

  • Yellow indicates minor damage that is healing automatically.

  • Red warns of severe structural damage requiring attention.

During experiments, the robotic hand successfully picked up and transported underwater objects.

Even when sharp shells punctured the sensor, it detected the damage immediately and began recovering while continuing to function.

This ability could make future underwater robots far more reliable during long missions.

Why This Technology Matters

Electronic devices are becoming increasingly important in underwater exploration, marine research, offshore construction, rescue missions, and environmental monitoring.

However, repairs underwater are expensive, slow, and sometimes impossible.

A sensor that can detect its own damage and repair itself could greatly reduce maintenance costs while improving safety and reliability.

The technology could also benefit many fields beyond underwater robotics.

Possible future applications include:

  • Soft robots

  • Prosthetic limbs

  • Wearable health devices

  • Electronic skin for humanoid robots

  • Medical rehabilitation equipment

  • Smart industrial sensors

  • Human-machine interfaces

Because it is flexible, self-powered, durable, and self-healing, the SMES could become a key building block for next-generation intelligent machines.

Looking Ahead

Professor Tan and his team hope to integrate this electronic skin into real robots, prosthetic devices, and wearable systems in the near future.

Their long-term vision is to create machines that behave more like living organisms—able to sense their surroundings, recognize injuries, repair themselves, and continue operating without human assistance.

As robotics continues to move into extreme environments such as deep oceans, disaster zones, and even space, technologies like SMES could play a vital role.

By combining self-powering, touch sensing, damage detection, and autonomous healing into one flexible electronic skin, this breakthrough brings engineers one step closer to creating machines that are as resilient and adaptable as living skin itself.

Reference: X. Zhang, J. Zhou, P. Chen, et al. “ A Self-Healing Magnetoelectric Sensor with Pain Sensing for Underwater Soft Electronics.” Advanced Materials 38, no. 28 (2026): e23052. https://doi.org/10.1002/adma.202523052

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