Rigid Particle-Induced Anomalous Softening in Elastomer Composites
Abstract
Particle-filled soft composites generally stiffen as particle loading increases, imposing a trade-off between functionality and compliance. Here, we show that this trade-off can be overcome by designing particles to actively direct gelation rather than act as passive fillers. In a sol-rich elastomer matrix, sol-phase kinetics redirect network formation towards particle-mediated assembly, yielding anomalous softening despite increasing particle content. This response is governed by topological reconfiguration of the load-bearing network during gelation rather than by filler loading alone. A structure-based model captures the composition-dependent onset of this behaviour, and the same response is reproduced across distinct particle systems. The resulting materials combine functionality with softness, energy dissipation, and recoverability under large deformation. These findings establish topology-guided gelation as a general strategy for engineering compliant functional composites for soft robotic actuation, conformal interfaces, and other systems that require both deformability and embedded material functionality.
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BibTeX
@misc{cho2026rigid,
title = {{Rigid Particle-Induced Anomalous Softening in Elastomer Composites}},
author = {Yonghyun Cho and Hyeongho Min and Hongdeok Kim and Dongeun Lee and Minjune Kim and Siyeon Jang and Ali Amini and Zitang Wei and Hosub Lim and Hwan-ho Cho and Bo-yong Park and Sang Won Lee and Joonmyung Choi and Metin Sitti and Sangyul Baik},
howpublished = {arXiv},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.48550/arxiv.2610.35380},
eprint = {2610.35380},
archivePrefix = {arXiv},
url = {https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.35380},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Rigid Particle-Induced Anomalous Softening in Elastomer Composites
AU - Yonghyun Cho
AU - Hyeongho Min
AU - Hongdeok Kim
AU - Dongeun Lee
AU - Minjune Kim
AU - Siyeon Jang
AU - Ali Amini
AU - Zitang Wei
AU - Hosub Lim
AU - Hwan-ho Cho
AU - Bo-yong Park
AU - Sang Won Lee
AU - Joonmyung Choi
AU - Metin Sitti
AU - Sangyul Baik
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/26
PB - arXiv
DO - 10.48550/arxiv.2610.35380
UR - https://arxiv.org/abs/2610.35380
AB - Particle-filled soft composites generally stiffen as particle loading increases, imposing a trade-off between functionality and compliance. Here, we show that this trade-off can be overcome by designing particles to actively direct gelation rather than act as passive fillers. In a sol-rich elastomer matrix, sol-phase kinetics redirect network formation towards particle-mediated assembly, yielding anomalous softening despite increasing particle content. This response is governed by topological reconfiguration of the load-bearing network during gelation rather than by filler loading alone. A structure-based model captures the composition-dependent onset of this behaviour, and the same response is reproduced across distinct particle systems. The resulting materials combine functionality with softness, energy dissipation, and recoverability under large deformation. These findings establish topology-guided gelation as a general strategy for engineering compliant functional composites for soft robotic actuation, conformal interfaces, and other systems that require both deformability and embedded material functionality.
ER -