title: Buckling of elastomer sheets under non-uniform electro-actuation.
abstract: Dielectric elastomer sheets undergo in-plane expansion when stimulated by a transverse electric field. We study experimentally how dielectric plates subjected to a non-uniform voltage distribution undergo buckling instabilities. Two different configurations involving circular plates are investigated: plates freely floating on a bath of water, and plates clamped on a frame. We describe theoretically the out-of-plane deformation of the plates within the framework of weakly non-linear plate equations. This study constitutes a first step of a route to control the 3D activation of dielectric elastomers.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Physique et Mécanique des Milieux Hétérogènes (PMMH), CNRS, ESPCI Paris, PSL Research University, Sorbonne Université, Univ. Paris Diderot. Paris, France. hadrien.bense@espci.fr.
authors.forename: Hadrien
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Bense
authors.forename: Miguel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Trejo
authors.forename: Etienne
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Reyssat
authors.forename: José
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Bico
authors.forename: Benoît
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Roman