Why do silicone elastomers remain flexible at very low temperatures?

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Know how researchers created a synthetic material, elastomers, that can change color and texture to specific voltage change, like that of cephalopods — elastomer Learn about elastomers that are changeable in colour and texture, much like the skin of octopuses and other cephalopods. In the elastomers, these changes take place under electrical stimulation.

Silicone elastomers remain flexible at very low temperatures primarily because of the unique nature of their molecular structure. The backbones of these polymers consist of alternating silicon and oxygen atoms, which allow the siloxane molecules to rotate freely around the Si–O bond.12

This freedom of rotation ensures that the molecules remain highly flexible even when various organic groups, such as methyl or phenyl, are attached to the silicon atoms. Consequently, silicones possess the lowest glass transition temperature—the point at which molecules become locked in a rigid, glassy state—of any elastomer. This property allows them to retain their resiliency and flexibility across a significantly wider temperature range than many other industrial polymers.12