Carbon nanotube rubber stays rubbery in extreme temperatures.

A rubbery material can undergo elastic deformation under stress and return to its original shape upon removal of the deforming force. This behavior of elastic deformation and recovery is known as rubbery elasticity or viscoelasticity, and gives rise to rubbery materials for various applications, ranging from household (rubber bands and balloons, gloves, pencil erasers, shoe soles, carpets) to industrial products (adhesives, door and window profiles, hoses, tires). Viscoelastic properties are temperature-dependent and none of the existing elastomers can retain their viscoelasticity over a wide temperature range. The most thermally resistant silicone rubber hardens at 55 8C and degrades at 300 8C. Recently, Hata and co-workers at the AIST and JST in Japan developed new viscoelastic material from carbon nanotubes (Figure 1) that is similar to silicone rubber, but