Prof. Ignacio Valiente Blanco is one of the authors of notable papers published in our journal Actuators (ISSN: 2076-0825).

“Development of an Active Micromagnetic Bearing with a 300 μm Outer Diameter Permanent Micromagnet”
by Efren Diez-Jimenez, Miguel Fernandez-Munoz, Rodrigo Garcia-Gonzalez, Hugo Rodriguez-Bodoque, Jesus del-Olmo-Anguix, Angel Villacastin-Sanchez, Gabriele Barbaraci, Emiliano Pereira, Oscar Manzano-Narro, Diego Lopez-Pascual and Ignacio Valiente-Blanco
Actuators 2026, 15(2), 79; https://doi.org/10.3390/act15020079
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0825/15/2/79

“Ultra-Low Power Consumption Electromagnetic Actuator Based on Potential Magnetic Energy Harnessing: Principle of Operation and Experimental Validation”
by M. Albertos-Cabanas, I. Valiente-Blanco, O. Manzano-Narro, D. Lopez-Pascual and S. Sanchez-Prieto
Actuators 2026, 15(1), 25; https://doi.org/10.3390/act15010025
Available online: https://www.mdpi.com/2076-0825/15/1/25

The following is a brief interview with Prof. Ignacio Valiente Blanco, in which he shares his insights on the articles:

“Development of an Active Micromagnetic Bearing with a 300 μm Outer Diameter Permanent Micromagnet”

1. Can you briefly introduce your article published in Actuators?

Our research presents the development of one of the smallest active micromagnetic bearings ever reported, capable of levitating a 300 μm outer‑diameter permanent micromagnet. The device consists of a 1 mm outer‑diameter coreless coil, integrated with the smallest commercially available Hall‑effect microsensor, which measures the magnet’s position with high precision. Through regulated coil current, we achieve stable magnetic levitation with one vertical degree of freedom, demonstrating a compact and fully functional micromagnetic bearing at the microscale.

2. What inspired you to focus on this topic?

At the microscale, machines and actuators face severe friction and wear, far more significant than in macroscopic systems, limiting efficiency, lifespan, and overall performance. Active magnetic bearings offer a friction‑free solution, but miniaturizing them has remained an open research challenge. This motivation—overcoming fundamental friction limitations and proving the feasibility of magnetic levitation at micrometer levels—drove the development of our micromagnetic bearing.

3. What are the most exciting findings or innovations in your study?

The challenges of miniaturizing the bearing have been huge due to the difficulties associated with scale effects. However, we demonstrated the feasibility of this well-established technology also for the microscale, creating a fully functional active micromagnetic bearing with a load capacity of about 1.6 mN/A.

4. How do you see your research impacting the field of actuator technology?

This work potentially opens the door for a new generation of friction‑free microscale actuators and MEMS devices using active magnetic levitation bearings to eliminate friction issues, accelerating the development of compact, high‑performance actuators for future microsystems in fields such as biomedicine, aerospace and many other fields.

“Ultra-Low Power Consumption Electromagnetic Actuator Based on Potential Magnetic Energy Harnessing: Principle of Operation and Experimental Validation”

1. Can you briefly introduce your article published in Actuators?

This work presents the development of a radically new type of rotary electromagnetic actuator specifically designed for high-speed, high-precision positioning with ultra-low power consumption. The actuator uses magnetic potential energy, stored between permanent magnets, and converts it into kinetic motion to switch rapidly between defined equilibrium positions, greatly reducing the energy and power consumption. A prototype of such an actuator has been designed, manufactured and experimentally tested. Results in this paper demonstrate that the 86 mm diameter actuator provides a maximum actuation torque of 590 mNm with just a 6.3 W maximum power consumption (about 80% less than that of a classical electromagnetic actuator).

The actuator is able to position a payload with 20 arcmin accuracy changing between target positions in just 48 ms, achieving angular acceleration up to 14500 rad/s^{^2}.

2. What inspired you to focus on this topic?

The idea was devised to provide a solution for optical filter wheels onboard of cryogenic space telescopes, where power consumption is a critical requirement. However, the benefits in energy and power saving from this new technology are applicable to any field where positioning of a payload is required with very low power consumption.

3. What are the most exciting findings or innovations in your study?

The most exciting fact in this research is that, after years of hard work, we were able to develop a new concept for an electromagnetic actuator which has the potential to save energy in many fields of application, increasing industry competitiveness, reducing environmental impact, and improving economic benefits. Electromagnetic actuation is a very well-studied subject, and it is not easy to come up with a new idea which has so much potential.

4. How do you see your research impacting the field of actuator technology?

Many industrial and scientific systems, such as optical filter wheels, pick and place robots, index rotary tables, and aerospace instrumentation, require fast, accurate positioning with extremely low power budgets. Traditional electromagnetic actuators struggle with high energy consumption during rapid and highly dynamic transitions. This actuator introduces a new paradigm shift towards energy-efficient precision positioning.

5. Why did you choose Actuators as the journal for your publications, and how was your experience with the editorial process?

Actuators is a good journal in the field of actuators and control, well positioned in JCR, and the review process is straightforward and it is resolved fast, which are crucial factors for us.