Electroactive polymers (EAP) are a unique class of shape changing materials that will broadly impact biomimetic technologies that are soft, elastic, and responsive to electrical stimuli. Dielectric elastomers have demonstrated the ability to produce large strains (&gt;300% area strain), and at high response speeds (0.02-20 kHz), when stimulated by an electric field. However, with few exceptions, the dielectric must be pre-strained to prevent failure by electromechanical instability. We have investigated bottlebrush elastomers as a new materials design platform, which operate at low applied electric fields and do not undergo failure by electromechanical instability.<sup>1</sup> Bottlebrush network architectures are inherently low modulus and already contain molecularly pre-strained network strands, which allow for actuation at low potential and without pre-strain. These properties make bottlebrush dielectric elastomers uniquely suited for applications that require fast shape changing materials including haptic displays and biological implants.<br/>

Super-soft bottlebrush elastomer actuators for shape changing applications

254th National Meeting (2017)

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