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As World Space Week 2026 celebrates the theme “Rocket Revolution,” researchers at CEITEC Brno University of Technology are looking beyond the journey itself: once humans reach destinations such as Mars, can locally available materials help support the technologies they will need?
World Space Week, observed globally from 4 to 10 October, highlights the contribution of space science and technology to society. This year’s theme focuses on advances in launch systems that are transforming access to space. Yet long-term planetary exploration will also require new approaches to energy, materials, and sensing while reducing dependence on supplies transported from Earth.
At the Future Energy and Innovation Laboratory at CEITEC BUT, led by Prof. Martin Pumera, researchers are exploring whether extraterrestrial materials can serve as functional components in future electronic and energy technologies. In a study recently published in Small, Dr. Shidhin Mappoli, Dr. Keval K. Sonigara, and Prof. Martin Pumera demonstrated a flexible triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) containing a Martian regolith simulant. The material was used for mechanical energy harvesting, proof-of-concept tactile sensing, wireless signal transmission, and a wearable keypad.
The work contributes to the concept of in situ resource utilization (ISRU), in which locally available planetary resources are used to reduce the need to transport materials from Earth.
From Martian Regolith to a Functional Material
Planetary regolith is often considered for construction, radiation shielding, and resource extraction. The CEITEC team investigated a different possibility: using its material properties directly in an electronic device.
The researchers used MGS-1, a high-fidelity mineralogical simulant of Martian basaltic regolith based on the Rocknest windblown soil characterized by NASA’s Curiosity rover in Gale Crater. MGS-1 particles were incorporated into polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS), a flexible polymer widely used in triboelectric devices.
The resulting composite contains a heterogeneous mixture of oxide- and silicate-rich mineral phases. In the study, these phases were associated with changes in dielectric response, surface microstructure, and interfacial charge trapping. In this way, the regolith simulant serves as more than an inert filler and directly modifies the composite's electrical behavior.
Little Regolith Makes a Big Difference
The researchers compared PDMS containing different concentrations of Martian regolith simulant. The strongest electrical output was obtained with 5 wt% regolith. At a tapping frequency of 12 Hz, this device produced an open-circuit voltage of approximately 12.8 V, more than twice the approximately 6.1 V measured for pristine PDMS under the same conditions. The study attributes the optimum at 5 wt% to a combination of enhanced dielectric polarization, changes in microscopic surface roughness, and charge-trapping effects introduced by the heterogeneous mineral phases.
From Energy Harvesting to Self-Powered Touch Interfaces
The researchers then explored how the material could be incorporated into practical human-machine interfaces. A small MR-PDMS TENG mounted on a glove served as a tactile probe, generating distinct voltage signatures upon contact with materials such as silicon, copper, aluminum, ITO, PLA, and polyimide. The electrical signals could also be transmitted wirelessly to a computer through an electronic readout module.
The team also fabricated a 4 × 4 triboelectric keypad using 16 individual regolith-containing sensor pads. Pressing a key generates a triboelectric pulse that can be assigned to a number, character, or function. The keypad was demonstrated with an Arduino-driven display for calculator operations.
These laboratory demonstrations suggest possible future roles for such tactile interfaces in controlled extraterrestrial habitats, robotic systems, rover control panels, or wearable technologies. The researchers emphasize, however, that the present devices are proof-of-concept systems tested under controlled ambient conditions rather than Mars-ready hardware. Further testing under vacuum, radiation, and thermal extremes would be required for exposed planetary environments.
Using Local Resources Beyond Construction
The study broadens the ISRU concept by showing that a Martian regolith simulant can be considered not only as a bulk material, but also as a functional component of an energy-harvesting and sensing device.
“What interested us was whether Martian regolith could do more than simply provide bulk material. Its mineral composition confers useful dielectric and interfacial properties, enabling it to actively contribute to energy harvesting and sensing. Our results show that even a relatively small amount of regolith simulant can significantly change the behavior of the device,” says Shidhin Mappoli, first author of the study.
According to the published study, this is the first demonstration of a Martian regolith simulant used as a functional triboelectric material in TENG applications. The work forms part of broader research at the Future Energy and Innovation Laboratory at CEITEC BUT on advanced materials, energy technologies, 3D printing and functional systems for terrestrial and space applications.
Published ahead of World Space Week, the study illustrates how materials science can complement advances in launch technology by addressing another question central to future exploration: how to make useful technologies from resources already available beyond Earth.
Scientific article
Martian-Regolith Simulant Confined Nanogenerators for Wireless Tactile Sensing for Human-Machine Interface
Authors: Shidhin Mappoli, Keval K. Sonigara, and Martin Pumera
Journal: Small
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/smll.74734
Research group: Future Energy and Innovation Laboratory, CEITEC Brno University of Technology