Cezan, S. DorukNalbant, Atakan A.Büyüktemiz, M.Dede, Y.Baytekin, H. TarıkBaytekin, Bilge2020-02-102020-02-102019-01http://hdl.handle.net/11693/53235Triboelectric charging of insulators, also known as contact charging in which electrical charges develop on surfaces upon contact, is a significant problem that is especially critical for various industries such as polymers, pharmaceuticals, electronics, and space. Several methods of tribocharge mitigation exist in practice; however, none can reach the practicality of using light in the process. Here we show a light-controlled manipulation of triboelectric charges on common polymers, in which the tribocharges are mitigated upon illumination with appropriate wavelengths of light in presence of a mediator organic dye. Our method provides spatial and temporal control of mitigation of static charges on common polymer surfaces by a mechanism that involves photoexcitation of organic dyes, which also allows additional control using wavelength. This control over charge mitigation provides a way to manipulate macroscopic objects by tribocharging followed by light-controlled discharging.EnglishOrganic molecules in materials scienceSoft materialsArticle10.1038/s41467-018-08037-52041-1723