As a first step in the inves�ga�on of the microactua�on, we printed LCE pillar arrays within three types of channel-like PDMS scaffolds in different orienta�ons (Figure ). These pillar arrays consisted of a base plate and 5 × 5 pillars with a diameter of 4 µm. Their actua�on was analyzed in an op�cal microscope with a hea�ng stage. This allowed us to record the varia�ons in the width and length of the array at room temperature and beyond the transi�on temperature. The impact of the PDMS channels on the LCE pillars became evident shortly a�er the removal of the unpolymerized ink. The pillars without PDMS channels in the vicinity, denoted as "pris�ne", underwent uniform shrinkage in both the x and y axes, primarily due to the homeotropic alignment enforced by the alignment surfaces on the glass cell. In contrast, the pillars printed within the channel-like scaffolds (labeled as "PDMS-Y" "PDMS-X" or PDMS-45° indica�ng the direc�on of the channels), exhibited a no�ceable shrinkage along the expected alignment direc�on. Interes�ngly, for the channels rotated 45° (referred to as "PDMS-45°"), the pillar array formed a diamond shape, with the shorter diagonal aligned parallel to the channel (Figure ). Once the temperature was increased above the transi�on temperature, an interes�ng observa�on emerged: while the pris�ne array expanded equally in both direc�ons, in the three arrays printed inside the PDMS channels, the expansion was more pronounced in the direc�on parallel to the channel's orienta�on.