PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Keplinger, Christoph AU - Sun, Jeong-Yun AU - Foo, Choon Chiang AU - Rothemund, Philipp AU - Whitesides, George M. AU - Suo, Zhigang TI - Stretchable, Transparent, Ionic Conductors AID - 10.1126/science.1240228 DP - 2013 Aug 30 TA - Science PG - 984--987 VI - 341 IP - 6149 4099 - http://science.sciencemag.org/content/341/6149/984.short 4100 - http://science.sciencemag.org/content/341/6149/984.full SO - Science2013 Aug 30; 341 AB - A range of stretchable, conductive materials can be made either by making an electrical conductor more stretchable or by adding an electrical conductor to a stretchable material. Keplinger et al. (p. 984; see the Perspective by Rogers) have added to the possibilities of an alternative stretchable ionic conductor based on a hydrogel material used to make deformable devices that are fully transparent to light over the visible spectrum and that can withstand high voltages and high frequencies. Existing stretchable, transparent conductors are mostly electronic conductors. They limit the performance of interconnects, sensors, and actuators as components of stretchable electronics and soft machines. We describe a class of devices enabled by ionic conductors that are highly stretchable, fully transparent to light of all colors, and capable of operation at frequencies beyond 10 kilohertz and voltages above 10 kilovolts. We demonstrate a transparent actuator that can generate large strains and a transparent loudspeaker that produces sound over the entire audible range. The electromechanical transduction is achieved without electrochemical reaction. The ionic conductors have higher resistivity than many electronic conductors; however, when large stretchability and high transmittance are required, the ionic conductors have lower sheet resistance than all existing electronic conductors.