Mechanically responsive surfaces that allow to switch reversibly from a hydrophobic to a hydrophilicsubstrate are reported. The surfaces are constituted of polyelectrolyte multilayers deposited on modifiedcharged silicone sheets. n bilayers of poly(allylamine)-Nafion (PAH−Naf) and m bilayers of poly(allylamine)−poly(acrylic acid) (PAH−PAA) composed the multilayers. A (PAH−Naf)n film possesses a water contactangle of around 105°, whereas the contact angle of a (PAH−Naf)4−(PAH−PAA)m multilayer is around 50°.When such a film with m< 5 and terminated by PAA is stretched out, its water contact angle increasesup to around 100°. Successive elongation/retraction cycles allow the water contact angle to alternatereversibly between 100 and 57° indicating the reversible mechanical responsive nature of the film.
