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Page 16 of 19 Chen et al. Soft Sci. 2026, 6, 48

CONCLUSIONS
In summary, we developed a MBF to facilitate catheter-free angioplasty within narrow and complex vascular
pathways. Experimental evaluations demonstrated that the device can be magnetically steered to access
highly tortuous branches as small as 1.1 mm. Furthermore, the MBF achieved controlled, wireless balloon
expansion via low-power microwave heating, while exhibiting favorable biocompatibility and functional
viability in ex vivo tests. These results demonstrate the feasibility of integrating magnetic navigation and
microwave-triggered balloon actuation into a single platform for small-vessel intervention. Further research
will focus on evaluating the system under more physiologically relevant conditions, and conducting in vivo
studies to further assess its translational potential.

DECLARATIONS
Authors’ contributions
Conceptualization: Wang, L.; Chen, H.; Sun, Y.
Methodology: Wang, L.; Chen, H.; Sun, Y.; Peng, H.; Zhang, N.; Li, J.; Sui, M.; Cai, C.
Formal analysis: Chen, H.; Sun, Y.
Visualization: Wang, L.; Chen, H.; Lin, Y.
Funding acquisition, supervision: Wang, L.
Writing - original draft: Chen, H.; Lin, Y.; Peng, H.; Li, R.; Ye, S.
Writing - review and editing: Wang, L.; Chen, H.

Availability of data and materials
The authors declare that the primary data supporting the findings of this study are available within the paper
and its Supplementary Materials. Additional data are available from the corresponding authors upon
reasonable request.

AI and AI-assisted tools statement
During the preparation of this manuscript, the AI tool ChatGPT (version 5.4, released 2026-03-05) was used
solely for language editing. The tool did not influence the study design, data collection, analysis,
interpretation, or the scientific content of the work. All authors take full responsibility for the accuracy,
integrity, and final content of the manuscript.

Financial support and sponsorship
This work was supported by the National Key Research and Development Program of China (Grant No.
2024YFE0215200), and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 12388101, 12532008,
12272369, 125B2045, 125B1010). Wang, L. acknowledges the support from Opening Fund of State Key
Laboratory of Structural Analysis, Optimization and CAE Software for Industrial Equipment (Grant No.
GZ24105), and the Fundamental Research Funds for the Central Universities (Grant No. YD2090002019).
Chen, H. and Peng, H. acknowledge the support from Students’ Innovation and Entrepreneurship
Foundation of USTC (Grant Nos. SC5290005507, SC5290005497).

Conflicts of interest
The authors declare that Chen, H., Sun, Y., and Wang, L. are inventors on a granted patent (Patent No.
ZL202510369651.6) related to the work described in this paper. The other authors declare that there are
no conflicts of interest.

Ethical approval and consent to participate
The ex vivo porcine placenta tissue used in this study was commercially obtained (Taobao, China) as an
agricultural byproduct. This work did not involve live animals, animal handling, or animal euthanasia
performed by the authors specifically for research purposes. The L-929 cell line used in this study is a
commercially available established cell line; therefore, no ethical approval was required.