My Expertise
Dr Foroughi's research focuses on the design and development of advanced smart materials, artificial muscles, soft robotics, and wearable technologies for next-generation biomedical and healthcare applications. His expertise spans artificial heart muscles and soft robotic cardiac assistance, wearable and implantable medical devices, health monitoring systems, flexible and wearable sensors, smart textiles, self-powered sensing technologies, and wearable energy harvesting systems. His research integrates materials science, robotics, biomedical engineering, and advanced manufacturing to develop innovative technologies that address major challenges in cardiovascular medicine and personalised healthcare.
Keywords
Biography
Dr Foroughi is a Senior Research Fellow in the School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering at UNSW Sydney and a Chief Investigator in the ARC Research Hub for Connected Sensors for Health. He is also a Visiting Professor in the Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery at Hannover Medical School, Germany. He was awarded the prestigious Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) Fellowship...view more
Dr Foroughi is a Senior Research Fellow in the School of Mechanical and Manufacturing Engineering at UNSW Sydney and a Chief Investigator in the ARC Research Hub for Connected Sensors for Health. He is also a Visiting Professor in the Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery at Hannover Medical School, Germany. He was awarded the prestigious Australian Research Council (ARC) Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) Fellowship in recognition of his outstanding research achievements.
Dr Foroughi is an internationally recognised researcher in smart materials, artificial muscles, soft robotics, and wearable technologies. His research integrates materials science, biomedical engineering, robotics, and advanced manufacturing to develop next-generation implantable and wearable medical devices for cardiovascular medicine and personalised healthcare. His current research focuses on artificial heart muscles, soft robotic cardiac assistance, wearable and implantable biomedical devices, flexible and wearable sensors, smart textiles, self-powered sensing technologies, and energy harvesting systems.
He is widely recognised for pioneering the field of fibre-based artificial muscles and is the inventor of torsional carbon nanotube artificial muscles, first reported in Science in 2011. His research has established new directions in artificial muscle technologies and their translation into soft robotic systems, implantable medical devices, and wearable healthcare technologies.
Dr Foroughi has published more than 250 peer-reviewed journal papers, including five publications in Science, and has received more than 14,000 citations with an h-index of 51. He has consistently been recognised among the Stanford/Elsevier World's Top 2% Scientists. His research excellence has been recognised through numerous national and international awards, including the IEEE Consumer Electronics Magazine Best Impacts Joint Award, the R&D 100 Gold Award for Market Disruptor Product, and recognition as an Emerging Research Fellow by the Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute (IHMRI).
He has secured more than A$12.5 million in competitive research funding from the Australian Research Council, the National Health and Medical Research Council, industry, universities, and government agencies. He has extensive experience leading multidisciplinary research programs and collaborating with clinicians, engineers, and industry partners to translate advanced technologies into real-world healthcare solutions.
Professor Foroughi has successfully supervised more than 25 higher degree research (HDR) students to completion, as well as over 100 Honours and Master's research students and six postdoctoral researchers and research assistants. He continues to mentor the next generation of researchers in smart materials, artificial muscles, soft robotics, biomedical engineering, and wearable technologies. His long-term vision is to establish electrically actuated artificial muscles as a transformative platform for implantable bioinspired medical devices that restore physiological function in patients with cardiovascular disease and, ultimately, enable next-generation therapies for other mechanically impaired organs.
My Grants
Lead/ Chief Investigator for over $12 million competitive research grants: NSW Health Collaborative Grants 2025, Cardiovascular Senior and Early-Mid Career Researcher Grants 2024, ARC research hub for connected sensors for health 2021, NSW TechVouchers 2017, Global Challenges 2016, ARC- Discovery Early Career Researcher Award (DECRA) Fellowship 2013
My Qualifications
Dr. Foroughi received his B.S. and M.S. degrees in Engineering (Polymer Materials Science) in 1997 and his Ph.D. in Materials Engineering from the School of Mechanical, Materials, Mechatronic, and Biomedical Engineering at the University of Wollongong, Australia, in 2010. He is a Senior Research Fellow at the University of New South Wales and a recipient of the Australian Research Council (ARC) DECRA Fellowship. Dr. Foroughi is also a visiting professor at the Department of Cardiothoracic, Transplantation, and Vascular Surgery at Hannover Medical School, Germany. Previously, he was a visiting professor at the Department of Thoracic and Cardiovascular Surgery at the University of Essen, Germany (2020–2023).
My Awards
NSW Cardiovascular Collaborative Grants (2025-2028)
Cardiovascular Senior and Early-Mid Career Researcher Grants (2025-2028)
ARC- Discovery Early Career Researcher Award Fellowship, (2013-2016),
Top Cited Article; Wearable Electronic Textiles from Nanostructured Piezoelectric Fibers has been recognized as a top cited paper in Advanced Materials Technologies 2020 – 2021 (WILEY)
Editor's Choice Articles : “Actuator Materials: Review on Recent Advances and Future Outlook for Smart Textiles” has been selected as the Editor's Choice Articles 2019 (MDPI – Fibers)
Best of Advanced Materials Technologies for “Wearable Electronic Textiles from Nanostructured Piezoelectric Fibers”; 2020 (WILEY)
Best Impacts, Joint Award by the IEEE Consumer Electronics Magazine 2017 for the article "Smart Fabrics and Networked Clothing”,
Emerging Research Fellow, Emerging Research Fellow , Illawarra Health and Medical Research Institute (IHMRI) September 2016 – present,
R&D 100 Awards & Technology competition (USA) with title: Artificial muscles from fishing line (HeliAct Muscles), Gold Award for the Market Disruptor Product at the 53rd annual R&D 100 Awards 2015,
Winner (first place) of University of Wollongong Pitch competition (Next Generation of Textile Scaffolds for Nerve Reconstruction ) in 2014,
Visiting Research Fellow, Alan G MacDiarmid NanoTech Institute, University of Texas at Dallas, United States (May 2011- July 2011),
Visiting Research Fellow, The National Creative Research Initiative Centre for Bio-Artificial Muscle, Hanyang University –Seoul, South Korea (September 2010- November 210),
Visiting Research Fellow, Alan G MacDiarmid NanoTech Institute, University of Texas at Dallas, United States (September 2009 – December 2009),
Asia Nanotech Camp Fellowship (2009, Taiwan),
Commercialisation Training Scheme Scholarship, University of Wollongong (2009),
Australian Research Scholarship from Australian Research Network for Advanced Materials (2008),
Trailblazer Award finalist- University of Wollongong (2008),
PhD Scholarship from University of Wollongong (2006),
First place in BSc degree at Polymers Department.
My Research Activities
My research focuses on developing next-generation artificial muscles, soft robotic systems, and smart materials that enable new approaches to healthcare and implantable medical technologies. By integrating materials science, biomechanics, robotics, computational modelling, and advanced manufacturing, I develop bioinspired systems that replicate the mechanical functions of biological tissues and organs.
A major focus of my research is the development of electrically actuated artificial heart muscles and soft robotic cardiac assistance systems for patients with heart failure. This work aims to establish a new generation of non-blood-contact implantable devices capable of restoring physiological cardiac function through biomimetic mechanical assistance. Beyond cardiovascular medicine, the underlying technologies provide a platform for future implantable devices targeting peripheral vascular disease, gastrointestinal disorders, and other mechanically impaired organs.
My research also advances wearable and flexible technologies, including smart textiles, flexible sensors, self-powered sensing systems, wearable energy harvesting, and intelligent human–machine interfaces for continuous health monitoring and personalised healthcare. These technologies combine multifunctional materials with innovative device architectures to create lightweight, flexible, and autonomous systems that operate in real-world environments.
A central theme across my research is translating fundamental discoveries in smart materials into practical engineering solutions with clinical and societal impact. Through close collaboration with clinicians, biomedical engineers, and industry partners, my research seeks to accelerate the development of next-generation implantable and wearable medical technologies that improve patient outcomes and quality of life.
My Research Supervision
Areas of supervision
Dr Foroughi Lab develops smart materials focused on artificial muscles, wearable robotics, and wearable technologies for advanced applications, including medical devices, health monitoring, and on-body energy generators.
My Engagement
Actively engaged with local and international industry partners for the scalable manufacturing of smart materials, including collaborations with NSW Health, Ocius Technology, CardioBionic, Eczanes Pharmaceuticals, Lincoln Agritech Ltd., and Geofabrics.
My Teaching
New Course in T1 2027:
MTRN4242 –Wearable & Flexible Robotics
Elective Course for Engineering Undergraduate and Postgraduate Students
Publications
ORCID as entered in ROS
https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1979-5213
Related Links
Torsional Carbon Nanotube Artificial Muscles
We show that an electrolyte-filled twist-spun carbon nanotube yarn, much thinner than a human hair, functions as a torsional artificial muscle in a simple three-electrode electrochemical system, providing a reversible 15,000° rotation and 590 revolutions per minute.
Artificial Muscles from Fishing Line and Sewing Thread
We demonstrated that inexpensive high-strength polymer fibers used for fishing line and sewing thread can be easily transformed by twist insertion to provide fast, scalable, nonhysteretic, long-life tensile and torsional muscles. Extreme twisting produces coiled muscles that can contrac...
Electrically, Chemically, and Photonically Powered Torsional and Tensile Actuation of Hybrid Carbon Nanotube Yarn Muscles
We have designed guest-filled, twist-spun carbon nanotube yarns as electrolyte-free muscles that provide fast, high-force, large-stroke torsional and tensile actuation. More than a million torsional and tensile actuation cycles are demonstrated, wherein a muscle spins a rotor at an ave...
Knitted Carbon-Nanotube-Sheath/Spandex-Core Elastomeric Yarns for Artificial Muscles and Strain Sensing
Highly stretchable, actuatable, electrically conductive knitted textiles based on Spandex (SPX)/CNT (carbon nanotube) composite yarns were prepared by an integrated knitting procedure. SPX filaments were continuously wrapped with CNT aerogel sheets and supplied directly to an interlocki...
Sheath-run artificial muscles
We describe a muscle type that provides higher performance, in which the guest that drives actuation is a sheath on a twisted or coiled core that can be an inexpensive yarn. This change from guest-filled to sheath-run artificial muscles increases the maximum work capacity by factors of ...
Superelastic Hybrid CNT/Graphene Fibers for Wearable Energy Storage
Herein, a novel approach is reported to develop superelastic wet-spun hybrid carbon nanotube graphene fibers followed by electrodeposition of polyaniline to achieve a high-performance fiber-based supercapacitor. It is found that the specific capacitance of hybrid carbon nanotube (CNT)/g...
Highly Conductive Carbon Nanotube-Graphene Hybrid Yarn
An efficient procedure for the fabrication of highly conductive carbon nanotube/graphene hybrid yarns has been developed.To start, arrays of vertically aligned multi-walled carbon nanotubes (MWNT) are converted into indefinitely long MWNT sheets by drawing. Graphene flakes are then depo...
Triaxial braided piezo fiber energy harvesters for self-powered wearable technologies
we demonstrate novel triaxial braided PVDF yarn harvesters that piezoelectrically convert tensile mechanical energy into electrical energy. Compressing or bending braided PVDF yarns generated a maximum output voltage of 380 mV and a power density of 29.62 μW cm−3 which is ∼1559% higher ...
Unipolar stroke, electroosmotic pump carbon nanotube yarn muscles
we describe unipolar stroke carbon nanotube yarn muscles in which muscle stroke changes between extreme potentials are additive and muscle stroke substantially increases with increasing potential scan rate. The normal decrease in stroke with increasing scan rate is overwhelmed by a nota...
High Performance Artificial Muscles to Engineer a Ventricular Cardiac Assist Device and Future Perspectives of a Cardiac Sleeve
This work will examine this new generation of electrically contractile polymer-based actuators for positive inotropic support for both the left and right ventricle (high- and low-pressure system) as cardiomyoplasty. A silicone coated electrothermal actuator is fabricated to engineer VAD...
Dual high-stroke and high–work capacity artificial muscles inspired by DNA supercoiling
Powering miniature robots using actuating materials that mimic skeletal muscle is attractive because conventional mechanical drive systems cannot be readily downsized. However, muscle is not the only mechanically active system in nature, and the thousandfold contraction of eukaryotic DN...
Advances in Wearable Sensors: Signalling the Provenance of Garments Using Radio Frequency Watermarks
There is a significant nascent market for ethically produced products with enormous commercial potential around the world. A reliable method to signal the provenance of products is therefore critical for industry, given that competition based on price is not a viable strategy. The abili...
Wearable Electronic Textiles from Nanostructured Piezoelectric Fibers
Herein, a novel approach is reported to create wearable energy generators and sensors using nanostructured hybrid piezoelectric fibers and exploiting the enormous variety of textile architectures. It is found that high performance hybrid piezofiber is obtained using a barium titanate (...
Biopolymers for Antitumor Implantable Drug Delivery Systems: Recent Advances and Future Outlook
In spite of remarkable improvements in cancer treatments and survivorship, cancer still remains as one of the major causes of death worldwide. Although current standards of care provide encouraging results, they still cause severe systemic toxicity and also fail in preventing recurrence...
Highly Stretchable Self-Powered Wearable Electrical Energy Generator and Sensors
Herein, a new method is demonstrated to create wearable energy generators and sensors using nanostructured hybrid polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF)/reduced graphene oxide (rGO)/barium-titanium oxide (BT) piezoelectric fibers and exploiting the enormous variety of textile architectures. Hig...
Artificial Muscles and Soft Robotic Devices for Treatment of End-Stage Heart Failure
we review the present state and future direction of artificial muscle based soft robotic biomedical devices in supporting the inotropic function of the heart, focusing on the emerging electrothermally artificial heart muscles. Artificial muscle powered soft robotic devices can mimic the...
High-performance hybrid carbon nanotube fibers for wearable energy storage
earable energy storage devices are of practical interest, but few have been commercially exploited. Production of electrodes with extended cycle life, as well as high energy and power densities, coupled with flexibility, remains a challenge. Herein, we have demonstrated the development ...
Soft, flexible freestanding neural stimulation and recording electrodes fabricated from reduced graphene oxide
In the work described here, strong and conductive microfibers (40–50 μm diameter) wet-spun from liquid crystalline dispersions of graphene oxide are fabricated into freestanding neural stimulation electrodes. The fibers are insulated with parylene-C and laser-treated, forming “brush” el...
Piezofibers to smart textiles: a review on recent advances and future outlook for wearable technology
This article starts with the fundamentals of wearable technology and materials involved and then reviews recent developments in fiber-based self-powered systems and sensors with the special focus on the piezoelectric poly(vinylidene fluoride) polymer and barium titanium oxide ceramic. I...
Preparation and characterization of hybrid conducting polymer–carbon nanotube yarn
Hybrid polypyrrole (PPy)–multi walled carbon nanotube (MWNT) yarns were obtained by chemical and electrochemical polymerization of pyrrole on the surface and within the porous interior of twisted MWNT yarns. The material was characterized by scanning electron microscopy, electrochemical...
A reactive wet spinning approach to polypyrrole fibres
Electrically conducting, robust fibres comprised of both an alginate (Alg) biopolymer and a polypyrrole (PPy) component have been produced using reactive wet-spinning. Using this approach polypyrrole–biopolymer fibres were also produced with single-walled carbon nanotubes (CNTs), added ...
Fabrication of Coaxial Wet-Spun Graphene–Chitosan Biofibers
One-step continuous wet-spinning of coaxial electroactive fibres of chitosan/graphene oxide (Chit/GO) via a facile method is introduced for the first time, eliminating the need for post-treatment processes. Spinnability of coaxial fibres as well as their characterization for several pro...
Development and Characterization of Novel Hybrid Hydrogel Fibers
Biopolymeric continuous core-sheath fibres, with an inner core of chitosan and alginate as the sheath, were fabricated for the first time without using a template. Hereby, the necessary conditions to achieve chitosan-alginate core-sheath fibre via a wet-spinning process are presented. S...
Wet-Spun Biofibre for Torsional Artificial Muscles
we demonstrate the use of twisted and coiled wet-spun chitosan fibres to achieve a novel torsional artificial muscle. The coiled fibres exhibited significant torsional actuation where the free end of the coiled fibre rotated up to 1155 degrees per mm of coil length when hydrated. This v...
Smart Fabrics and Networked Clothing: Recent developments in CNT-based fibers and their continual refinement
Virtually all human cultures routinely wear garments or some sort of attire, both for protection against the elements and as part of a complex social display of everything from class status to gender to the act of belonging to a particular subculture. Smart garments, in addition to perf...
Advances in Wearable Piezoelectric Sensors for Hazardous Workplace Environments
Recent advances in wearable energy harvesting technology as solutions to occupational health and safety programs are presented. Workers are often exposed to harmful conditions—especially in the mining and construction industries—where chronic health issues can emerge over time. While we...
Artificial Muscle of Electrothermally Active Contractile Polymers Device and Method of Manufacturing the Same (US Patent App. 17/943,122, 2023)
Artificial muscle device and method of manufacturing the same for the treatment or control of an organ such as the heart. The artificial muscle device comprises artificial polymer actuators or fibers that can work together to form the artificial muscle structure. The artificial fibers a...
Manufacturing Ulvan Biopolymer for Wound Dressings
Although recent advancements in wound healing strategies have led to successful treatment for numerous wounds, the incidence of wound infections remain elevated, and is anticipated to rise as the effectiveness of antibiotics wanes. Biofabrication is a promising technique for producing i...
Advanced Energy Harvesters and Energy Storage for Powering Wearable and Implantable Medical Devices
Wearable and implantable active medical devices (WIMDs) are transformative solutions for improving healthcare, offering continuous health monitoring, early disease detection, targeted treatments, personalized medicine, and connected health capabilities. Commercialized WIMDs use primary ...
Highly stretchable nanocomposite piezofibers: a step forward into practical applications in biomedical devices
High-performance biocompatible composite materials are gaining attention for their potential in various fields such as neural tissue scaffolds, bio-implantable devices, energy harvesting, and biomechanical sensors. However, these devices currently face limitations in miniaturization, fi...
An implantable device and a method for implanting said device in a subject
An implantable device and methods for preparing and implanting said device into a subject for use in treating a medical condition when implanted therein is disclosed. The device comprises at least one coaxial fibre of a hydrophilic polymer and a hydrophobic polymer, wherein at least one...
Nanotechnology and Conducting Polymer Fibres: Towards the development of nano-structured conducting polymers and nano-composite fibres
Smart materials are one of frontier technologies in engineering and manufacturing. A smart material is capable of recognising appropriate environmental stimuli,processing the information arising from the stimuli,and responding to it in an appropriate manner and time frame. It is well kn...
Soft Robotic Cardiac Sleeves: Materials, Actuation Mechanisms, and Translational Pathways
Heart failure remains a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, highlighting the urgent need for effective alternatives to heart transplantation. While ventricular assist devices (VADs) have improved survival for patients with advanced heart failure, their long-term use is a...
New robotic heart device aims to improve heart failure treatment
New robotic heart device aims to improve heart failure treatment A soft robotic medical device being developed in NSW could help stabilise patients with heart failure and improve their quality of life. Supported by a NSW Health Cardiovascular Collaborative Grant from OHMR, Dr Javad F...
SBS interview with Dr Javad Foroughi discussing his research on artificial muscles
SBS interview with Dr Javad Foroughi highlighting his groundbreaking research on artificial muscles
Featured in The Australian: How University Research is Shaping the Future of Defence Technologies
Dr Foroughi Featured in The Australian: How Universities Are Using Science to Develop Next-Generation Defence Technologies
Clinical translation and engineering challenges of soft robotic cardiac sleeves for heart failure
Soft robotic cardiac sleeves are an emerging class of non-blood-contact mechanical circulatory support devices designed to augment myocardial function while avoiding direct interaction with blood. Their development addresses important limitations of conventional heart failure therapies ...Videos
