Sequence spinning axially encoded metafibers

Axially Encoded Mechano‐Metafiber Electronics by Local Strain Engineering

“…Based on the nonlinear deformation concept, we designed a series of mechano‐metafibers with ϕ stiff ranging from 10.8% to 90% to explore the local strain engineering properties (Figure S7, Supporting Information). Beyond the previous observation, [ 8 ] we revealed the fundamental concept of the nonlinear deformation behavior by both experimental results andFEA. A well‐defined mathematical model (Equations ) was proposed to describe the nonlinear deformation properties, which provided insights into accurately designing strain amplification and retardation by controlling the metastructure ratio ( ϕ stiff ).…”

“…For in situ observation, we labeled the spinning dopes by commercial pigments. [ 8,9 ] The spinning dopes were selectively introduced into the “Y”‐shaped microchip (Figure S1c, Supporting Information), formed an alternative arrangement and finally solidified as an axially encoded mechano‐metafiber (Figure 1b,c). Owing to the merits of automation and microfluidic spinning, axial encoding of continuous mechano‐metafiber can be processed over 100 m. We tailored the length and content ( ϕ ) of sequences by adjusting the operation time of the corresponding solenoid valve, which made the encoded mechano‐metafibers programmable (Figure 1d,e; Figure S2, Supporting Information).…”

“…Since the wet‐spinning technique is versatile for a wide variety of materials, this strategy is also applicable to other material systems with different mechanical properties, such as nanocomposites with rich hybrid nanoscale build blocks. [ 8 ] SEM inspections showed the intact interface between adjacent soft and stiff sequences (Figure S4a, Supporting Information), which is formed by the double diffusion between the successive spinning dopes during the spinning process. When the interface is robust, it keeps the mechano‐metafiber continuous under extensive strain (>100%).…”

“…In our previous observation, we noticed the inhomogeneous strain of the mechano‐metafiber under homogeneous loading. [ 8 ] Here, we aim to systematically investigate the nonlinear deformation behaviors of mechano‐metafibers. We measured the local tensile modulus of a mechano‐metafiber and confirmed the axial modulus variation between stiff (200–250 MPa) and soft sequences (10–15 MPa, Figure S5, Supporting Information).…”

“…Recently, we reported a spinning method to sequentially design fiber metastructures, which is ideal for fabricating mechano‐metafiber on a large scale. [ 8 ] But for mechano‐metafiber, its basic deformation rules and applied patterns in fiber electronics still remain unexplored.…”