Mechanical and electrical properties of α-MoO3 belts under strain for flexible electronics applications

[Display omitted] •Transparent α-MoO3 belts were synthesized by a single-step solid state reaction.•α-MoO3 revealed stability under tensile strain up to 3 %, but delaminated at higher strain.•α-MoO3 belts revealed a transmittance exceeding 68 % with a bandgap of 3.01 eV.•CoFe2O4 films on α-MoO3 belts exhibited strong magnetic anisotropy with in-plane easy axis. This study investigated a straightforward and cost-effective method for synthesizing α-MoO3 belts and evaluated their potential as substrates for flexible electronic devices. Transparent α-MoO3 belts, featuring millimeter-scale side lengths and micrometer-scale thicknesses, were produced through a one-step sintering process using metallic molybdenum powder. When affixed to stretchable substrates, the α-MoO3 belts demonstrated robust mechanical stability under continuous and sustained tensile strain in the longitudinal direction. The belts exhibited a transmittance exceeding 68 % in the visible and near-infrared light regions. The current between gold dots on belts fixed to a stretchable polydimethylsiloxane substrate increased with the application of tensile strain. Furthermore, a CoFe2O4 thin film deposited at elevated temperature onto an α-MoO3 belt exhibited significant magnetic anisotropy. These findings introduce a novel and efficient approach for fabricating highly crystalline thin films on stretchable and bendable substrates using α-MoO3 belts.