Strong and Programmable Dry Adhesion through Graded Modulus Design

Strong and Programmable Dry Adhesion through Graded Modulus Design | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article Strong and Programmable Dry Adhesion through Graded Modulus Design K. Jimmy Hsia, Yangchengyi Liu, Yuning Yang, Yingjie Fu, Weiyi Liu, and 10 more This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-8723773/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Strength of soft adhesives is limited by interfacial stress concentrations at corners and edges, which hinder the full utilization of their load-bearing capability. Here, we propose a new class of scalable, compliant graded modulus adhesives (GMAs) that improve strengths by one-order-of-magnitude, extend size limitation of soft adhesives by three-orders-of-magnitude, enable adaption to various surface morphologies, and provide on-demand detachment. We fabricate the GMAs by differential photopolymerization via light attenuation, generating continuous modulus gradient of two-orders-of-magnitude over a 1 mm thick sample, and resulting in glassy and rubbery phase on opposing surfaces. The GMAs effectively homogenize the interfacial stresses over the entire contact surface, eliminate stress concentrations at corners and edges, and enable adhesion at theoretical limit. Upon heating to 80 ℃, the modulus gradient is diminished, leading to drastically lower adhesion strength and easy detachment. These advantages establish GMAs as new adhesive design paradigm for developing next-generation soft adhesives. Physical sciences/Materials science/Soft materials/Polymers Physical sciences/Engineering/Mechanical engineering Full Text Additional Declarations There is NO Competing Interest. Supplementary Files SupplementaryVideo1.mp4 Supplementary video 1 SupplementaryVideo3.mp4 Supplementary video 3 SupplementaryVideo4.mp4 Supplementary video 4 SISoftAdhesiveStrengthenedbyGradedDesignclean.pdf Supplementary information SupplementaryVideo6.mp4 Supplementary video 6 SupplementaryVideo5.mp4 Supplementary video 5 SupplementaryVideo2.mp4 Supplementary video 2 Cite Share Download PDF Status: Posted Version 1 posted You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. We do this by developing innovative software and high quality services for the global research community. Our growing team is made up of researchers and industry professionals working together to solve the most critical problems facing scientific publishing. Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-8723773","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":true,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":589228532,"identity":"f964435a-42b8-4700-b3ca-0f6fd07fc31a","order_by":0,"name":"K. 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