Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 12, 2026

Epitaxial Nanostructured α-Quartz Films on Silicon: From the Material to New Devices
Published on: October 6, 2020
Silicones for Stretchable and Durable Soft Devices: Beyond Sylgard-184
Sungjune Park1, Kunal Mondal1, Robert M Treadway1
1Department of Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering , North Carolina State University , 911 Partners Way , Raleigh , North Carolina 27695 , United States.
Researchers identified specific silicone elastomers for robust, stretchable devices. These materials enable strong interfacial bonding, crucial for applications like soft robotics and microfluidics.
Area of Science:
- Materials Science
- Polymer Chemistry
- Soft Robotics
Background:
- Fabricating stretchable devices requires silicone elastomers with excellent mechanical properties and reliable interfacial bonding.
- Conventional silicones like Sylgard-184 have limitations in stretchability and tear resistance for advanced applications.
- Commercially available soft silicones often exhibit poor plasma bondability due to surface-migrating silicone oils.
Purpose of the Study:
- To identify and characterize silicone elastomers suitable for fabricating highly stretchable and tear-resistant devices.
- To investigate the factors influencing interfacial bonding in silicone elastomers via plasma or UV ozone treatment.
- To explore methods for improving the bondability of soft, stretchable silicones.
Main Methods:
- Screening of various commercial and platinum-cured silicone elastomers.
- Mechanical property testing, including elongation at break and tear strength.
- Plasma and UV ozone treatment for interfacial bonding assessment.
- Oligomer extraction from silicone networks to enhance bondability.
- Formulation of silicone blends to achieve intermediate properties.
Main Results:
- Silicone elastomers with Shore hardness exceeding 15 A demonstrated successful plasma bonding.
- Extraction of silicone oligomers enabled bonding in otherwise difficult-to-bond soft silicones.
- Sylgard-186, Elastosil-M4130, and M4630 showed superior stretchability (>200% elongation), tear strength (>12 N/mm), and plasma bondability.
- Successful fabrication of stretchable electrodes using these silicones and liquid metal.
Conclusions:
- Silicone elastomer selection based on Shore hardness is critical for achieving robust plasma bonding.
- Optimized silicone elastomers offer a pathway to advanced, mechanically resilient soft electronic devices.
- The identified silicones are promising for applications in soft robotics, electronic skin, and energy storage.
Related Concept Videos
Brick Durability, Strength, and Appearance
Mnemonic Devices
Acronyms
Acronyms are created by using the initial letters of a series of words to form a new word or phrase. This approach condenses complex information into a single, memorable entity. For example,...
Non-ohmic Devices
Consider a simple circuit consisting of a battery, a diode, and a resistor. A...
Parenteral Drug Delivery Systems: Injectables, Implants, and Infusion Devices
Design Example: Identifying the Locations of Monuments in the Field Using Global Positioning System Device
Network Covalent Solids
To break or to melt a covalent network solid, covalent bonds must be broken. Because covalent bonds are relatively strong, covalent network solids are typically...

