Poly(siloxane) network of ultra-high elongation

A poly(dimethylsiloxane) (PDMS) elastomer with the remarkable ultimate elongation (λ max ca. 30, e B ca. 2900 %) was prepared by crosslinking long precursor PDMS chains in solution with a low PDMS concentration via end groups and then removing the solvent from the resulting PDMS gels (deswelling). The first step lessens the amount of trapped entanglement which is an origin for fracture, and the second reduces the end-to-end distance of network chains in the undeformed state by utilizing large volume decrease accompanying deswelling.