Deformation-tolerant linkage of silicone rubbers and carbon-based elastomers via chemical and topological adhesion

Abstract

Integrating silicone rubbers with carbon-based elastomers is a common practice in assembling stretchable electronics, but weak or rigid interfacial linkages often lead to structural failure under deformation. Here, we present a chemical and topological adhesive (CTA) composed of poly(styrene–isobutylene–styrene) (SIBS) and maleic anhydride-grafted polypropylene (PP-g-MAH) to bridge silicone rubbers and carbon-based elastomers. The CTA synergizes covalent bonding (via amine-anhydride reactions) with topological entanglement (enabled by matched chain reptation) and achieves interfacial toughness >200 J m⁻² through finger-pressing which can be further increased to >600 J m⁻² via hot pressing. The adhered interface can endure 10 000 cycles of 100% stretch and 10 days of exposure to acidic/alkaline solutions (pH 1–13). The CTA applies to various silicone rubbers (e.g., polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) and Ecoflex silicone elastomer) and carbon-based elastomers (e.g., poly(styrene–ethylene–butylene–styrene) (SEBS), poly(styrene–isobutylene–styrene) (SIBS), and poly(styrene–butylene–styrene) (SBS)). This adhesion strategy significantly increases the interfacial toughness of stretchable devices in practical usage, offering a general solution for deformation-tolerant integration of stretchable electronics.