Use of shear to incorporate tilt into the microstructure of reversible gecko-inspired adhesives

摘要

The present invention relates to an easy, scalable method, relying on conventional and unconventional techniques, to incorporate tilt in the fabrication of synthetic polymer-based dry adhesives mimicking the gecko adhesive system. These dry, reversible adhesives demonstrate anisotropic adhesion properties, providing strong adhesion and friction forces when actuated in the gripping direction and an initial repulsive normal force and negligible friction when actuated in the releasing direction.

主权项

1. A method for fabricating an adhesive comprising:
a step for forming a patterned mold; a step for forming an inverse replica of said patterned mold; said inverse replica forming step comprising: (i) a step for applying a first polymer to said patterned mold, (ii) a step for allowing said first polymer to partially cure, (iii) a step for removing said partially-cured first polymer from said patterned mold, (iv) a step for shearing said partially-cured first polymer, (v) a step for allowing said sheared partially-cured first polymer to fully cure; and a step for forming a final adhesive using said sheared inverse replica of said patterned mold.