Abstract
Healable conductive materials have received considerable attention. However, their practical applications are impeded by low electrical conductivity and irreversible degradation after breaking/healing cycles. Here we report a highly conductive completely reversible electron tunneling-assisted percolation network of silver nanosatellite particles for putty-like moldable and healable nanocomposites. The densely and uniformly distributed silver nanosatellite particles with a bimodal size distribution are generated by the radical and reactive oxygen species-mediated vigorous etching and reduction reaction of silver flakes using tetrahydrofuran peroxide in a silicone rubber matrix. The close work function match between silicone and silver enables electron tunneling between nanosatellite particles, increasing electrical conductivity by ~5 orders of magnitude (1.02×103 Scm−1) without coalescence of fillers. This results in ~100% electrical healing efficiency after 1000 breaking/healing cycles and stability under water immersion and 6-month exposure to ambient air. The highly conductive moldable nanocomposite may find applications in improvising and healing electrical parts.
Highlights
Healable conductive materials have received considerable attention
The peroxidation could be inhibited by a butylated hydroxytoluene (BHT) inhibitor[28]
The acronyms used in this study are summarized in Supplementary Table 4
Summary
Healable conductive materials have received considerable attention. their practical applications are impeded by low electrical conductivity and irreversible degradation after breaking/healing cycles. The close work function match between silicone and silver enables electron tunneling between nanosatellite particles, increasing electrical conductivity by ~5 orders of magnitude (1.02×103 Scm−1) without coalescence of fillers This results in ~100% electrical healing efficiency after 1000 breaking/healing cycles and stability under water immersion and 6-month exposure to ambient air. We report a highly conductive completely reversible electron tunneling-assisted percolation network of silver nanosatellite (AgNS) particles for putty-like healable and moldable nanocomposites. The AgNS particles were uniformly and densely distributed with an interparticle distance of 3.1 nm, and the close work function match between Ag and SR enabled electron tunneling This led to a completely reversible reconstruction of the percolation network, achieving ~100% electrical healing efficiency after 1000 breaking/healing cycles. An emergency electronics repair demonstration was carried out by a robot
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