Fabrication of stretchable compliant electrodes on PDMS with Au nanoparticles

A stretchable and compliant electrode surface of Au metal on polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) is introduced in this study. A thin layer of Au nanoparticles is thus formed by a simple chemical reduction from aqueous Au salt solution with the AuPDMS gel surface itself acting as a reducing site. Employing the swelling behaviour of PDMS and Au nanoparticles affinity to bind with sulphur, an in-plane molecular device has been realized for measuring the conductance of thiol molecules. The device is capable of forming stable and robust linkages with Au. The molecules anchored between the Au islands are able to undergo reversible compression and tension, which shows the flexibility of the device.