Researchers create stretchy electronics
ERJ staff report (DS)
Illinois -- Researchers at the McCormick School of Engineering, working with a team of scientists from at the University of Illinois and abroad, have recently developed a design that allows electronics to bend and stretch to more than 200 percent their original size, four times greater than is possible with today's technology. The key is a combination of a porous polymer and liquid metal.
A paper about the findings, “Three-dimensional Nanonetworks for Giant Stretchability in Dielectrics and Conductors,†was published June 26 in the journal Nature Communications.
First, they created a highly porous three-dimensional structure using a polymer material, poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS), that can stretch to three times its original size. Then they placed a liquid metal (EGaIn) inside the pores, allowing electricity to flow consistently even when the material is excessively stretched.
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Press release from North Western University
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