Fluorinated Liquid Crystal Elastomers with Large Deformation for Electrically Programmable Surface Topography at Room Temperature

Adaptive surfaces capable of on-demand topographical reconfiguration are essential for advancing transformative technologies in adaptive optics and smart sensing, and next-generation intelligent devices. Nevertheless, the development of electro-actuated liquid crystal elastomer (LCE)-based dynamic surfaces that exhibit large-scale deformations while operating efficiently at room temperature remains an unresolved bottleneck, that hinders their practical deployment. Herein, fluorinated liquid crystal elastomer (F-LCE) films featuring electric-field-responsive surface topography switching is successfully developed. The incorporation of fluorine-containing mesogens not only endows the resultant F-LCE films with enhanced dielectric anisotropy, but also enables low-voltage actuation (15 V), while simultaneously lowering the operating temperature down to room temperature. When subjected to an external electric field, the directional migration and reorientation of the mesogenic units induce a topographical transition within the F-LCE films, thereby achieving the intelligent, on-demand modulation of dynamic surface regulation. Arising from the interplay between the electric field characteristics and the inherent viscoelastic hysteresis of the polymer network, alongside the distinct dynamic responses of the polar dipoles, the F-LCE films present divergent surface topographies under alternating current (AC) and direct current (DC) electric field. Moreover, by adjusting the voltage and frequency of the applied electric field, the F-LCE films realize highly tunable dynamic surfaces with a maximum deformation of 1260 nm and a strain of 40.6%. This work opens up a new avenue for the development of switchable dynamic surfaces, offering great potential for applications in tunable optics and microfluidic devices.