Chongyu Zhu and others of our group have published an article titled 'A Photoorganizable Triple Shape Memory Polymer for Deployable Devices' on Small on December 16, 2021. This work reported a photoorganizable triple shape memory polymer (POTSMP), which is composed of an azobenzene-containing thermoplastic polyurethane. Through introducing the photoswitchable Tg effect and photothermal-induced hydrogen bond dissociation network, the POTSMP can be arbitrarily programmed into two temporary shapes under UV and visible light irradiation. On the other hand, crystalline domains are applicable as the physical crosslinking netpoints, which enables more rapid reconfiguration, situ localized and repair process of permanent shape through the melting and recrystallizing process (typically within seconds) by photothermal effect. Moreover, POTSMP enables the facile processing of complex 2D/3D structures, which can act as a promising alternative to the current metal-based deployable devices for low or no-gravity cosmic environments. It is also anticipated to realize the photoorganizable operation in more complex and large-scale devices.

Fulltext Link: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/smll.202106443