A team of scientists have produced a slime robot that can shape-shift and navigate itself through tight areas of space.

The slime, which has been co-created by Prof Li Zhang of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, comprises of a mixture of an alcohol (polyvinyl alcohol) and magnetic particles according to an article via The Guardian.

It is a device that has ‘visco-elastic properties’, which means that it is able to act as both a liquid and a solid material.

“It’s very much like mixing water with [corn] starch at home. When you touch it very quickly it behaves like a solid. When you touch it gently and slowly it behaves like a liquid,” said Zhang.

In the future, it is thought that the robot could be used in a medical setting to decrease the potential dangers from small batteries being swallowed.

“To avoid toxic electrolytes leak[ing] out, we can maybe use this kind of slime robot to do an encapsulation, to form some kind of inert coating,” said Zhang.

“The ultimate goal is to deploy it like a robot.”