A common reason consumers discard mobile phones is cracked screens, but technology currently in development could one day change that.
Researchers at the University of Tokyo have created glass from a low-weight polymer that can “heal” itself when it breaks, according to The Guardian newspaper. The glass, made from a polymer called polyether-thioureas, mends cracks when “pressed together by hand without the need for high heat to melt the material.” Researchers said it could be used in device screens.
The glass was discovered by accident, The Guardian reports, when a student was crafting the mixture as a glue material.
Self-healing materials have been used in several smartphone models in the past, including in cases to repair scratches. But a self-healing glass, while proposed in the past, has not been used in screens at a commercial scale.
