Grapene’s unusually high conductivity and favorable mechanical properties could further the development of flexible electronics, new batteries, and innovative composite materials for aeronautics and space flight. However, the development of elastic and tough films remains a challenge.
In the journal Angewandte Chemie (“A Stretchable and Tough Graphene Film Enabled by Mechanical Bond”), a research team has now introduced a method to overcome this hurdle: they linked graphene nanolayers via “extendable” bridging structures.
Cartoon representations of the fabrication process of RBG films and toughening mechanism of mechanical bond. Upon applied force, the hidden chain of [2]rotaxane was released due to intramolecular motion, resulting in an increased interlayer slip distance. It follows that the mechanical performance of RBG films were improved when mechanical bond was introduced.
