Flexible coloring element by using bending deformation of electroactive hydrogel

We demonstrated coloring elements with high ratio change of the coloring area by using bending deformation of electroactive hydrogel. By using the nondimensional deflection α of a gel, we showed that the response time for the color change and the thickness of the coloring element can be designed. We fabricated a 3 × 3 dot-matrix display with α of 0.56 and evaluated the performance of the coloring element. As a result, the coloring area ratios in blank state and colored state were 7.6±4.6% and 92.1±4.6%, respectively. The response times were 12 seconds from blank state to colored state, and 13 seconds from colored state to blank state.