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Updated: Feb 19, 2026

Drawing and Hydrophobicity-patterning Long Polydimethylsiloxane Silicone Filaments
Published on: January 7, 2019
Gravity-Drawn Silicone Filaments: Production, Characterization, and Wormlike Chain Dynamics
Roxanna Kiessling1, Samuel J S Rubin2, Jacquelyn Zehner1
1Keck Science Department, Chemistry, Claremont McKenna College , Claremont, California 91711, United States.
Abstract:
We introduce a method to produce continuous polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) silicone filaments on the order of 0.5 m long and 100 μm in diameter. The approach overcomes traditional limitations in silicone drawing by partially precuring the polymer and drawing through a tube furnace. We characterize the filaments' mechanical properties, and their ability to switch hydrophobicity by UV-ozone and corona discharge patterning. The flexible filaments' dynamic properties were evaluated by way of athermal acoustic excitation at the air-water interface, revealing conformational reconfigurability consistent with a wormlike chain model. We envision applications in rapid prototyping and as a platform for model foldamer studies.
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