siloxane

1 9.9

A chemical with silicon and oxygen atoms in a chain used to make silicones

noun
/sɪˈlɒkseɪn/

Specialized

: siloxano

In the past, the CD of soft lithography was limited by the choice of commercial siloxane with a Young's modulus of 3 MPa as stamp material.

Examples

The work of adhesion of the siloxane stamp with the gold substrate mediated spontaneous propagation of the contact front from a place of initial contact over the entire area.

Academic text (2001)
Compounds containing siloxane are widely used in the production of elastomers for various applications.
Elastomers like PDMS, Poly dimethyl siloxane are actually quite attractive as stamp materials.
The scientist explained how siloxane polymers are essential in manufacturing durable and flexible materials.
In their research, the team found that siloxane can improve the performance of certain adhesives.

Surface Forms

siloxane singular

siloxanes plural

Morphology

siloxane = silicon (semi-transparent) = silox + ane

The combining form 'silox-' signals silicon–oxygen chemistry (relatable to 'silicon' and 'oxygen'), but the technical combining forms and the chemical suffix '-ane' make the word specialized rather than immediately obvious to average learners.

Etymology

The word siloxane comes from the parts sil- for silicon and -oxane from oxygen, because these chemicals are made of a chain of silicon and oxygen atoms. So, the name reminds you it is a 'silicon-oxygen' chain, which is why siloxanes make the flexible base of many silicones and are used in things like lubricants and cosmetics.