Assembly of Foldable 3D Microstructures Using Graphene Hinges

Origami/kirigami-inspired 3D assembly approaches have recently attracted attention for a variety of applications, such as advanced optoelectronic devices and biomedical sensors. The results reported here describe an approach to construct classes of multiple foldable 3D microstructures that involve deformations that typical conductive materials, such as conventional metal films, cannot tolerate. Atomically thin graphene sheets serve as folding hinges during a process of 2D to 3D conversion via a deterministic buckling process. The exceptional mechanical properties of graphene enable the controlled, geometric transformation of a 2D precursor bonded at selective sites on a prestretched elastomer into folded 3D microstructures, in a reversible manner without adverse effects on the electrical properties. Experimental and computational investigations of the folding mechanisms for such types of 3D objects reveal the underlying physics and the dependence of the process on the thickness of the graphene/supporting films that define the hinges.