Electro-spraying and ultra-violet light curing of polydimethylsiloxane to fabricate thin films for low-voltage dielectric elastomer actuators

Florian M. Weiss; Gabor Kovacs; Tino Töpper; Bekim Osmani; Vanessa Y. F. Leung; Bert Müller

doi:10.1117/12.2220786

15 April 2016 Electro-spraying and ultra-violet light curing of polydimethylsiloxane to fabricate thin films for low-voltage dielectric elastomer actuators

Florian M. Weiss, Gabor Kovacs, Tino Töpper, Bekim Osmani, Vanessa Y. F. Leung, Bert Müller

Author Affiliations +

Proceedings Volume 9798, Electroactive Polymer Actuators and Devices (EAPAD) 2016; 97983C (2016) https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2220786
Event: SPIE Smart Structures and Materials + Nondestructive Evaluation and Health Monitoring, 2016, Las Vegas, Nevada, United States

Abstract

Currently, dielectric elastomer actuators (DEA) are mainly based on micrometer-thin polymer films and require operating voltages of several hundred volts. In medical applications, however, voltages as low as a few tens of volts are required. To this end, we prepared nanometer-thin dielectric elastomer layers. It is demonstrated that alternating current, electro-spray deposition allows for the fabrication of homogenous, flat, nanometer-thin polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) films. The growth of the PDMS with average number molecular weights ranging from 800 to 62,700 g/mol, at a constant flow rate of 267 nL/s, was in situ monitored by means of spectroscopic ellipsometry. The Cauchy layer model used for data interpretation may only be applied to flat PDMS layers. Thus, in the present study the droplet morphology was also determined by atomic force microscopy. Spectroscopic ellipsometry does allow for the qualitative determination of the thin film morphology. However, for high molecular weight polymers the precise measurement during deposition is challenging. Independent of the molecular weight, the roughness of the deposited PDMS films considerably smoothens during the ultra-violet radiation treatment. After curing, the electro-sprayed nanometer-thin PDMS films are homogeneous enough to qualify for the fabrication of low-voltage DEA.

Citation Download Citation

Florian M. Weiss, Gabor Kovacs, Tino Töpper, Bekim Osmani, Vanessa Y. F. Leung, and Bert Müller "Electro-spraying and ultra-violet light curing of polydimethylsiloxane to fabricate thin films for low-voltage dielectric elastomer actuators", Proc. SPIE 9798, Electroactive Polymer Actuators and Devices (EAPAD) 2016, 97983C (15 April 2016); https://doi.org/10.1117/12.2220786

ACCESS THE FULL ARTICLE

INSTITUTIONAL
Select your institution to access the SPIE Digital Library.

SELECT YOUR INSTITUTION

PERSONAL
Sign in with your SPIE account to access your personal subscriptions or to use specific features such as save to my library, sign up for alerts, save searches, etc.

PERSONAL SIGN IN

No SPIE Account? Create one

PURCHASE THIS CONTENT

SUBSCRIBE TO DIGITAL LIBRARY

50 downloads per 1-year subscription

Members: $195

Non-members: $335 ADD TO CART

25 downloads per 1 - year subscription

Members: $145

Non-members: $250 ADD TO CART

PURCHASE SINGLE ARTICLE

Includes PDF, HTML & Video, when available

Members: $17.00

Non-members: $21.00 ADD TO CART

PROCEEDINGS
9 PAGES

DOWNLOAD PAPER SAVE TO MY LIBRARY

GET CITATION

RIGHTS & PERMISSIONS

Get copyright permission Get copyright permission on Copyright Marketplace

KEYWORDS

Polymers

Ultraviolet radiation

Spectroscopic ellipsometry

Dielectric elastomer actuators

Polymer thin films

Data modeling

Ellipsometry

Show All Keywords

Keywords/Phrases

Search In:

Publication Years