The present invention is directed to embodiments of reactive material (RM) and an associated chemical time delay that includes an RM, according to an embodiment of the present invention. One embodiment includes a delay material that is an RM patterned on a substrate using lithographic techniques. Another embodiment includes a delay material that is an RM deposited on a patterned substrate such as a mesh. The present invention also includes a chemical time delay that includes either embodiment of the delay material, or any variation on the delay material that would be known to or conceivable to one of skill in the art.