Thermally reversible self-healing polysilsesquioxane structure-property relationships based on Diels-Alder chemistry

An in-depth examination of the self-healing properties of both dienophile and diene functionalized ladder-like structured polysilsesquioxane copolymers and terpolymers was investigated. Through functionalization of both diene and dienophile on the double-stranded siloxane backbone with ternary n-alkyl functional groups acting as chain mobility control, the effect of chain mobility and chemical structure on self-healing and mechanical properties were elucidated. All of the single component self-healing hybrid materials exhibited fast healing times (∼5 min), and their de-crosslinked adducts exhibited exceptional retention of solubility in common organic solvents for good reusability, all while having inherent high thermal stability and optical transparency.