Yusril Yusuf and a Research on Muscles

A researcher, Yusril Yusuf, refuses to be stuck in limitations. Within the minimum research facilities in Indonesia, this Physics lecturer of Mathematics and Science Faculty of Gadjah Mada University keeps on developing his research. Thanks to his efforts, Yusril was chosen as the only representative from Indonesia in the sixtieth Lindau Laureta Nobel international scientific convention in Linday, Germany, last 27 June-2 July.

All this time, Yusril pursues his research in a small laboratory with a roof patched of plastic because of leaks. The laboratory of Physics and Mathematics of Mathematics and Science Faculty of Gadjah Mada University that he established on 2007 is the witness of perseverance of the man born in Pekan Baru, Riau. "I established the laboratory from nothing, it has been producing a bachelor and 12 masters of students who conduct their research here, "said Yusril in his small laboratory in Yogyakarta. Not much can be seen in the laboratory aside of a table of laboratory with two microscopes. One of them was a gift from his supervisor back in Japan. There are also two computer sets and sets of research tools. In one corner of the room, there is a cupboard storing Liquid Crystal Elastomers (LCEs) which was gotten for free from its own inventor, a profesor from Germany.

With those things, Yusril develops his research on LCEs barium muscles to make artificial muscles as similiar as human's muscles as possible. The substance is supple and chewy just like human's muscles and able to contract while being flowed by electricity. This relatively new and has not widely developed research creates the opportunity of humane and similiar body organ creation. The research halso has the potential to be developed into elastical robot which can be used to search victims of earthquakes. "People has always have difficulty to search for earthquake victims under the ruins. With a supple and flexibel robot, the search can be much more easier and faster so that the posibility of another victims can be prevented,"he said.

Four Countries
Yusril said that the research he has done was cross country research. Five researchers of four countries are involved, those are Japan, Germany, United States and Indonesia. Total research in Indonesia would not be possible due to facilities and experts limitation. "Five of us are still doing experiments in our own place. Anything can not be done here in Indonesia will be done in Japan, for example. Or the other way aroung, the experiment data we have here can also be used by the researcher in Japan or Germany. However, most of the time, the research result here can not be used to get new development due to the tools limitation," said Yusril.

This field research grew his interest while he was a student at Kyushu, Japan, in 2000-2008. This father of three daughters was awarded Glenn H Brown Prize from the International Liquid Crystal Society (ILCS) for his previous research in Colorado, United States of America in 2006. Yusril is recorded as the first researcher from Indonesia who was awarded such award. This award has been given to thirty-two researchers mostly European, American and Japanese. With the support of the faculty and university he works in, Yusril established a material physics laboratorium as soon as he came back in Indonesia. Most equipments were given from his colleagues overseas. He also supervises students who are interested in such research field.

It was in that research that enable him to meet sixty-one nobel prizes and six-fifty young researchers in physics, chemistry and medical physiology around the world in Lindau, Germany.