Abstract
A photothermally foldable soft bimorph was prepared via the dry transfer of poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT) doped with tosylate onto a poly(dimethylsiloxane) film. The photothermal folding was optimized via reversible actuation by controlling the thickness of each layer and the temperature increase to afford large deflection and displacement up to 150° and >20 mm, respectively, upon exposure to near-infrared (NIR) light (808 nm). A two-dimensional array of the bimorph converted into complex three-dimensional architectures, such as a Venus flytrap, under light and reversibly unfolded in the dark. Taking advantage of the photothermal nature of PEDOT, a localized heat pocket was generated inside the folding structure. Thus, a Venus flytrap with a hot pocket reaching 100 °C was realized for the first time. The Venus flytrap could trap and move an object within a few seconds of NIR exposure.
Highlights
IntroductionConductive polymers (CPs), such as polypyrrole, polyaniline and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT), have been used to provide various actuations due to their high electrical conductivity, sorption/desorption properties and flexibility.[11,12,13,14] significant efforts have been focused on CP actuators that exhibit large volume changes in air upon the sorption or desorption of the water vapor present in ambient air under the application of an electric current.[15,16,17,18,19,20] For example, a humidity-driven, bilayered, anisotropic actuator has been reported based on a PEDOT–polystyrenesulfonic acid (PEDOT:PSS) layer with a soft poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) layer
The PDMS-coated PP-PEDOT layer was detached from the Si wafer by lifting the film border
PP-PEDOT/PDMS bimorphs were prepared via a dry transfer method to afford a soft bimorph with unique NIR lightresponsive characteristics
Summary
Conductive polymers (CPs), such as polypyrrole, polyaniline and poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene) (PEDOT), have been used to provide various actuations due to their high electrical conductivity, sorption/desorption properties and flexibility.[11,12,13,14] significant efforts have been focused on CP actuators that exhibit large volume changes in air upon the sorption or desorption of the water vapor present in ambient air under the application of an electric current.[15,16,17,18,19,20] For example, a humidity-driven, bilayered, anisotropic actuator has been reported based on a PEDOT–polystyrenesulfonic acid (PEDOT:PSS) layer with a soft poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) layer This actuator showed an intrinsic sensing capability via the joule effect or directly via environmental humidity variations.[11] photothermal CPs with reversible folding to generate threedimensional (3D) structures or heat pockets have not been previously reported. The resultant PEDOTs have a hydrophobic polymer surface, are water insoluble and have better surface energy matching with a hydrophobic surface than conventional PEDOT:PSSs.[28,29] the PEDOTs with tosylate dopants have high photothermal properties in a thin-film state (sub-micron level).[24,25] Such one-step film preparation from EDOT and the high electrical conductivity plus photothermal properties of the film could be advantages for PEDOT as an active bimorph over other materials.[7,30,31] To transfer the PEDOT layer directly onto a soft PDMS layer, a dry transfer method could be explored and used to take advantage of the curing-induced detachment properties of the PDMS surface.[32,33] This dry transfer method would be essential to maintain the doping state of the PEDOT layer because the method does not use a solvent or any additives
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