Dielectric elastomers have spent the past quarter-century moving from laboratory curiosities to working components in artificial muscles, soft robots, flexible electronics and biomedical devices. A new review in the Journal of Materials Science sets out to chart that entire trajectory, combining a systematic classification of the materials with a quantitative look at how the field has grown.
The authors, Yang Hong, Tao Jiang and Zirong Luo, base their historical account on a bibliometric and quantitative analysis of Scopus-indexed publications covering 25 years of research on dielectric elastomer smart materials. By visualising the developmental trends in this literature, the review traces how the technology has evolved from fundamental electromechanical studies toward the diverse application landscape seen today.
At the heart of the field’s appeal are the materials themselves. Dielectric elastomers offer excellent electromechanical conversion, large electrostrain, high energy density and great flexibility, which explains why they have been widely adopted for flexible artificial muscles, soft robotics, flexible electronics and biomedicine. The review systematically classifies and summarises the fundamental properties and characteristics of these flexible smart materials and their composites, providing a consolidated reference for what the materials can and cannot do.
Theoretical research receives its own dedicated treatment. The authors comprehensively sort out and elaborate recent advances in DE-related theory, an area that underpins the design of devices capable of converting electrical energy into mechanical motion and back again. Understanding these electromechanical fundamentals, the review argues, is essential for pushing the materials toward fully flexible integrated systems.
On the application side, the review surveys the state of the art across several distinct fields: flexible artificial muscles and soft robotics, flexible electronics, energy devices, optical devices and biomedical engineering. Each of these areas exploits the unique performance merits of dielectric elastomers in different ways, from large-strain actuation to compliant sensing, and the review draws together examples from across this breadth.
Progress has not been without obstacles. The authors discuss the key bottlenecks currently limiting the further development of dielectric elastomer technology, grounding that assessment in the current research status rather than in projections. These limitations shape the review’s forward-looking contribution: a proposed design philosophy called FEASCI, short for fully flexible integration of energy, actuation, sensing and control, intended for DE smart devices.
The FEASCI concept reflects a recurring theme in the field: individual dielectric elastomer components have matured considerably, but combining energy supply, actuation, sensing and control into a single fully flexible device remains an open engineering challenge. By framing integration as a design philosophy rather than a single technology, the review aims to give subsequent researchers a common target to work toward.
The review concludes by summarising existing limitations and future developmental directions of dielectric elastomer technologies, with the stated aim of providing innovative insights for subsequent research. As a review article, it does not report new experimental results; its contribution lies in organising a quarter-century of published work, identifying where the field stands, and outlining where it may go next.
Subject of Research: A review of 25 years of research on flexible dielectric elastomer smart materials and their applications
Article Title: Review: advances in flexible dielectric elastomer smart materials-from electromechanical fundamentals to frontier applications
Article References: Hong, Y., Jiang, T., & Luo, Z. (2026). Review: advances in flexible dielectric elastomer smart materials-from electromechanical fundamentals to frontier applications. Journal of Materials Science, 61(41), 31518-31551. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10853-026-13616-9
Image Credits: AI Generated
DOI: 10.1007/s10853-026-13616-9
Keywords: dielectric elastomers, artificial muscles, soft robotics, flexible electronics, biomedicine, electromechanical conversion, electrostrain, energy density, FEASCI, bibliometric analysis, smart materials, composites
News Source: Denise Maddox. (October 29, 2026). Dielectric elastomers at 25: a review maps the rise of flexible smart materials. Scienmag.
