3D Fluorescent Hydrogel Origami for Multistage Data Security Protection

Abstract

Current fluorescence‐based anti‐counterfeiting strategies primarily encode information onto single 2D planes and underutilize the possibility of encrypting data inside 3D structures to achieve multistage data security. Herein, a fluorescent‐hydrogel‐based 3D anti‐counterfeiting platform is demonstrated, which extends data encryption capability from single 2D planes to complex 3D hydrogel origami geometries. The materials are based on perylene‐tetracarboxylic‐acid‐functionalized gelatin/poly(vinyl alcohol) hydrogels, which simultaneously show Fe3+‐responsive fluorescence quenching, borax‐triggered shape memory, and self‐healing properties. By employing an origami technique, various complex 3D hydrogel geometries are facilely fabricated. On the basis of these results, a 3D anti‐counterfeiting platform is demonstrated, in which the data printed by using Fe3+ as the ink are safely protected inside complex 3D hydrogel origami structures. In this way, the encrypted data cannot be read until after specially predesigned procedures (both the shape recovery and UV light illumination actions), indicating higher‐level information security than the traditional 2D counterparts. This facile and general strategy opens up the possibility of utilizing 3D fluorescent hydrogel origami for data information encryption and protection.

Intelligent Polymer‐Based Bioinspired Actuators: From Monofunction to Multifunction

“…Comparatively, stimuli–responsive hydrogels, usually in forms of 3D networks of hydrophilic polymers filled with aqueous solutions and enabling macroscopic volume changes through swelling or shrinking in response to various external stimuli, are particularly promising in biomedical fields. [ 22 ] They are usually formed by the polymerizations of monomers or the crosslinking of polymers using materials such as N ‐isopropylacrylamide, [ 23 ] sodium alginate, [ 24 ] gelatin, [ 25 ] acrylamide, acrylic acid, [ 26 ] and so on. Due to their similarities to the native extracellular matrix (ECM) which provide mechanical support and 3D microenvironments for cell attachment and ingrowth and transport channels for nutrients and metabolites, the bioinspired actuators based on the stimuli–responsive hydrogels hold special promise in various biomedical areas such as drug delivery and tissue engineering.…”

Pre‐Stretched Double Network Polymer Films Based on Agarose and Polyacrylamide with Sensitive Humidity‐Responsive Deformation, Shape Memory, and Self‐Healing Properties

“…Smart materials are defined as the materials having one or more properties that can be significantly altered in a controlled manner by chemical or physical stimulus such as vapor,1–3 heat,4–8 light,7–11 electric felds,12,13 and pH 14–16. In recent years, smart materials have been of wide interest due to their potential applications in the fields of adaptive devices, soft robotics, and sensors 17–21. Many responsive polymers have attracted much interest in these fields due to their advantages such as being lightweight, flexible, and easy‐to‐modify.…”

Construction of a Novel Photoresponsive Supramolecular Fluorescent Hydrogel through Host‐Guest Interaction between β‐Cyclodextrin and Azobenzene

“…), fluorescent hydrogel materials can exert beneficial effects on optoelectronic devices, sensors, displays, etc. . For instance, Lee and colleagues have established a fluorescent hydrogel sensor for the monitoring of glucose.…”