Ultrastretchable, extreme-environment-adaptable, skin-like supramolecular conductive hydrogels based on phytic acid–mediated hydrogen-bonding networks

Conductive hydrogels have shown great potential in wearable electronics due to their flexibility, conductivity, and biocompatibility. However, their practical applications are severely limited by insufficient anti-freezing and water-retention capabilities. In this work, a supramolecular conductive hydrogel was fabricated via photo-initiated copolymerization under UV irradiation of phytic acid, acrylamide, and the ionic liquid monomer 2-acryloyloxyethyl trimethylammonium chloride. The hydrogel exhibits exceptional mechanical properties and environmental adaptability: it achieves an ultrahigh stretchability of up to 5000%, strong adhesion to various substrates including fabrics, maintains high conductivity (>1 S m −1 ) at −20 °C, and retains 82% of its water content after 3 h at 60 °C. As a textile-integrated strain sensor, the hydrogel demonstrates high sensitivity (gauge factor up to 4.52), rapid response (20 ms), and excellent stability, enabling accurate monitoring of human motions such as elbow and knee bending, as well as handwriting, thereby providing reliable motion perception in robotic clothing systems. This study presents a filler-free hydrogel platform that integrates conductivity, environmental tolerance, and sensing performance, offering a promising pathway for next-generation wearable robotic apparel.