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Designing elastomers with the ability to adjust their mechanical properties in real time to maintain consistency of mechanical response under external forces is critical to providing stability and reliability of their devices. However, elastomers currently have a general dependence on the strain rate in their mechanical properties, leading to mechanical instability. We designed a supramolecular elastomer via a ligand-competition sacrifice strategy and intraring stabilized structures to decouple mechanical responses from strain-rate variations. The statistical values of the stress–strain of the obtained elastomer exhibit minimal mechanical fluctuations, with only 13% tensile strength percentage change and 4% elongation at break percentage change across strain rates (20–500 mm min –1 ), achieving strain-rate insensitivity. Its multidynamic network enables 96% self-healing efficiency after 72 h at room temperature. Additionally, Zn 2+ -pyrimidine coordination in hard phases grants cyan fluorescence, reversibly quenched by Cu 2+ for customizable information encryption. This work resolves critical instability issues in elastomers while integrating self-healing and optical responsiveness, offering a versatile platform for smart anticounterfeiting systems and adaptive devices requiring consistent performance under unpredictable mechanical conditions.
Li et al. (Wed,) studied this question.