Low-Voltage Reversible Electroadhesion of Ionoelastomer Junctions |
| |
Authors: | Hyeong Jun Kim Lindsay Paquin Christopher W Barney Soonyong So Baohong Chen Zhigang Suo Alfred J Crosby Ryan C Hayward |
| |
Affiliation: | 1. Polymer Science and Engineering Department, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, MA, 01003 USA;2. Energy Materials Research Center, Korea Research Institute of Chemical Technology, Daejeon, 34114 South Korea;3. John A. Paulson School of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Kavli Institute for Bionano Science and Technology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, 02138 USA |
| |
Abstract: | Electroadhesion provides a simple route to rapidly and reversibly control adhesion using applied electric potentials, offering promise for a variety of applications including haptics and robotics. Current electroadhesives, however, suffer from key limitations associated with the use of high operating voltages (>kV) and corresponding failure due to dielectric breakdown. Here, a new type of electroadhesion based on heterojunctions between iono-elastomer of opposite polarity is demonstrated, which can be operated at potentials as low as ≈1 V. The large electric field developed across the molecular-scale ionic double layer (IDL) when the junction is placed under reverse bias allows for strong adhesion at low voltages. In contrast, under forward bias, the electric field across the IDL is destroyed, substantially lowering the adhesion in a reversible fashion. These ionoelastomer electroadhesives are highly efficient with respect to the force capacity per electrostatic capacitive energy and are robust to defects or damage that typically lead to catastrophic failure of conventional dielectric electroadhesives. The findings provide new fundamental insight into low-voltage electroadhesion and broaden its possible applications. |
| |
Keywords: | contact mechanics electroadhesion ionic double layer ionoelastomer junction ionotronics |
|
|