α-Lipoic-Acid-Based Multi-Functional Silicone Composites for Soft Electronics

With the emergence of soft electronics, composite materials with a combination of robust adhesion, reprocessing and recycling capability, electrical and thermal conductivity, and biocompatibility are highly required. α-Lipoic acid–based silicone composites are fabricated by a simultaneous ring-opening reaction of epoxide-functionalized silicone with α-lipoic acid and ROP of α-lipoic acid. The liquid metal (LM) is incorporated via −COOH-LM- and -S-LM- coordination. The resultant LM-LAPs exhibited robust adhesion to various substrates. The LM-LAPs exhibited efficient reprocessability and recycling capability enabled by carboxylic groups, disulfide exchange, and depolymerization of the disulfide backbone. Thermal and electrical conductivity reach 2.35 W m–1 K–1 and 19.48 S m–1 for LM-LAP70. Notably, the optimized LM-LAP50 was successfully used in monitoring body movement. This design offers a new route for creating silicone elastomers with technological implications for flexible electronics.