Investigation of electrostrictive polymers as actuators for mesoscale devices

Abstact This paper presents an investigation of the use of electrostrictive silicone polymers as actuators for mesoscale devices. The generated strains of both flat and rolled actuators, based on Dow Corning Sylgard 182 and 184, with sputtered gold electrodes, are presented as functions of the applied electric field. Variables examined in this study include silicone film thickness, gold electrode thickness, cycling of the applied electric field, and actuator configuration (flat or rolled). In general, thinner silicone films and gold electrodes yielded greater strains, at a constant applied field. The actuator performance tended to deteriorate with repeated application of the electric field, and the gold electrodes cracked after being subjected to a large percentage strain.Nomenclature A Cross sectional area, mm² - a ₁ , a ₂ electrostrictive constants, m²/V² - D diameter, mm - E electric field, V/m - _o permittivity of free space, F/m - dielectric constant for silicones, F/m - F force, N - J work, J - l length, m - S _ij strain tensor, dimensionless - S _ijkl tensor of elastic compliance coefficients, m - t thickness, m - T _kl stress tensor, Pa - u _i displacement vector, mm - V volume, mm³ - Poisson ratio, dimensionless - w width, m - Y Youngs modulus, Pa