An All‐Solid‐State Flexible Piezoelectric High‐k Film Functioning as Both a Generator and In Situ Storage Unit

An all‐solid‐state flexible generator–capacitor polymer composite film converts low‐frequency biomechanical energy into stored electric energy. This design, which combines the functionality of a generator with a capacitor, is realized by employing poly(vinylidene fluoride‐co‐hexafluoropropylene) (PVDF‐HFP) in the simultaneous dual role of piezoelectric generator and polymer matrices of the flexible capacitor. Proper surface modification of the reduced graphene oxide (rGO) fillers in the polymeric matrices is indispensable in achieving the superior energy storage performance of the composite film. The heightened dielectric performance stems from enhanced compatibility of the rGO fillers and PVDF‐HFP matrices, and a microcapacitor model properly explains the dielectric behaviors. A device that is easily fabricated using our film allows timely decoupled motion energy harvest and output of the motion‐generated electricity. This report opens new design possibilities in the fields of motion sensors, information storage and high‐voltage output by accumulating low‐frequency random biological motions.     

Flexible pressure sensor with high sensitivity and fast response for electronic skin using near-field electrohydrodynamic direct writing

Electronic skin imitates the function of human skin. The flexible pressure sensor is an important sensor of electronic skin. Although the flexible pressure sensor has made some progress, electronic skin is still a challenging subject with good pressure resolution, high sensitivity, and fast response ability in biomedical, human motion detection, personal health monitoring, and other fields. The PEDOT:PSS/GR/SWCNTs multicomponent solution was directly written on the flexible PDMS substrate by the near-field electrohydrodynamic direct-writing method, a serpentine shaped pressure sensitive unit was prepared, which was encapsulated with the PDMS thin film, and the flexible pressure sensor was fabricated. The sensitivity of the flexible pressure sensor is about 0.39 kPa⁻¹ at 0–0.5 kPa and 1.04 kPa⁻¹ at 0.5–2.4 kPa, and the response/recovery speed is 75 ms/150 ms, respectively. The fabricated flexible pressure sensor can detect a small pressure of about 6.4 Pa. The experimental results show that the fabricated flexible pressure sensor has high sensitivity, fast response capability, and low detection limit. The flexible pressure sensor for electronic skin demonstrates good performance in the application of finger joint movement and word pronunciation recognition, which indicates that it has great potential application in human motion detection and personal health monitoring.     

Dendrite-Free Zn/rGO@CC Composite Anodes Constructed by One-Step Co-Electrodeposition for Flexible and High-Performance Zn-Ion Batteries

Aqueous zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) with good flexibility have attracted great demands for portable and wearable electronics. However, the low Coulombic efficiency and poor cycling performance caused by uncontrolled Zn dendrite growth limit their practical applications. Herein, a novel strategy is proposed to construct a flexible and dendrite-free composite anode by one-step co-electrodeposition. Interestingly, the reduction of Zn²⁺ ions to Zn nanoflakes is synchronously accompanied by graphene oxide reduction, leading to a composite anode comprised of Zn with an interpenetrated conductive network of reduced graphene oxide (rGO) on a carbon cloth (CC) substrate, namely Zn/rGO@CC. The 3D rGO network not only improves the electrical conductivity and wettability of the composite anode to lower the interfacial resistance but also homogenizes the electric field distribution and Zn²⁺ ion flux, thus effectively inhibiting the growth of Zn dendrites. As expected, the Zn/rGO@CC anode exhibits long cycle stability for nearly 1000 h at 1 mA cm⁻² with low voltage hysteresis. Furthermore, the Zn/rGO@CC composite anode provides the corresponding aqueous Zn||MnO₂ full cells with remarkable rate capability and stunning long-term durability. The as-fabricated quasi-solid-state ZIBs also demonstrate coveted flexibility, showing high potential in future wearable and portable electronic devices.     

Lithium–Sulfur Battery Cable Made from Ultralight,Flexible Graphene/Carbon Nanotube/Sulfur Composite Fibers

The emergence of flexible and wearable electronic devices with shape amenability and high mobility has stimulated the development of flexible power sources to bring revolutionary changes to daily lives. The conventional rechargeable batteries with fixed geometries and sizes have limited their functionalities in wearable applications. The first‐ever graphene‐based fibrous rechargeable batteries are reported in this work. Ultralight composite fibers consisting of reduced graphene oxide/carbon nanotube filled with a large amount of sulfur (rGO/CNT/S) are prepared by a facile, one‐pot wet‐spinning method. The liquid crystalline behavior of high concentration GO sheets facilitates the alignment of rGO/CNT/S composites, enabling rational assembly into flexible and conductive fibers as lithium–sulfur battery electrodes. The ultralight fiber electrodes with scalable linear densities ranging from 0.028 to 0.13 mg cm^?1 deliver a high initial capacity of 1255 mAh g^?1 and an areal capacity of 2.49 mAh cm^?2 at C /20. A shape‐conformable cable battery prototype demonstrates a stable discharge characteristic after 30 bending cycles.     

Stretchable,Skin‐Mountable,and Wearable Strain Sensors and Their Potential Applications: A Review

There is a growing demand for flexible and soft electronic devices. In particular, stretchable, skin‐mountable, and wearable strain sensors are needed for several potential applications including personalized health‐monitoring, human motion detection, human‐machine interfaces, soft robotics, and so forth. This Feature Article presents recent advancements in the development of flexible and stretchable strain sensors. The article shows that highly stretchable strain sensors are successfully being developed by new mechanisms such as disconnection between overlapped nanomaterials, crack propagation in thin films, and tunneling effect, different from traditional strain sensing mechanisms. Strain sensing performances of recently reported strain sensors are comprehensively studied and discussed, showing that appropriate choice of composite structures as well as suitable interaction between functional nanomaterials and polymers are essential for the high performance strain sensing. Next, simulation results of piezoresistivity of stretchable strain sensors by computational models are reported. Finally, potential applications of flexible strain sensors are described. This survey reveals that flexible, skin‐mountable, and wearable strain sensors have potential in diverse applications while several grand challenges have to be still overcome.     

一种电子皮肤的触觉传感性能研究

皮肤是人类感知外界信息的重要器官,人类通过皮肤产生的触觉感来判定环境变化,从而做出相应的反应.该文以聚偏二氟乙烯(PVDF)为主材料,设计制备了液体芯PVDF压电纤维、电子皮肤柔性触觉传感器.为了测试该电子皮肤的触觉传感性能,实验以推力计施加压力,使压电纤维发生形变,则电荷改变.通过机器学习误差逆向传播(BP)神经网络...     

A Highly Flexible and Lightweight MnO2/Graphene Membrane for Superior Zinc-Ion Batteries

Batteries powering next-generation flexible and wearable electronic devices require superior mechanical bendability and foldability. Herein, a self-standing hybrid nanoarchitecture constructed by ultralong MnO₂ nanowires and graphene nanosheets as an advanced and lightweight cathodes for flexible and foldable zinc-ion batteries (ZIBs) is designed and fabricated. The new-designed batteries exhibit not only a high energy density of 436 Wh kg⁻¹ based on the total cathode mass but also good 2000-cycling durability. More importantly, the shape-deformable ZIBs can be operated without any capacity loss under both bent and folded circumstances. The foldable ZIBs with high energy density and long lifetime hold great promise for smart and wearable electronics.     

All‐Fiber Structured Electronic Skin with High Elasticity and Breathability

With the rapid advancement in artificial intelligence, wearable electronic skins have attracted substantial attention. However, the fabrication of such devices with high elasticity and breathability is still a challenge and highly desired. Here, a route to develop an all‐fiber structured electronic skin with a scalable electrospinning fabrication technique is reported. The fabricated electronic skin is demonstrated to exhibit high pressure sensing with a sensitivity of 0.18 V kPa^?1 in the detection range of 0–175 kPa. This wearable device could maintain prominent sensing performance and mechanical stability in the presence of large deformation, even when the elastic deformation is up to 50%. The electronic skin is easily conformable on different desired objects for real‐time spatial mapping and long‐term tactile sensing. Besides, it possesses high gas permeability with a water vapor transmittance rate of 10.26 kg m^?2 d^?1. More importantly, the electronic skin is capable of working in a self‐powered manner and even serves as a reliable power source to effectively drive small electronics. Possessing several compelling features, such as high sensitivity, high elasticity, high breathability as well as being self‐powered and scalable in fabrication, the presented device paves a pathway for smart electronic skins.     

Microchannel‐Confined MXene Based Flexible Piezoresistive Multifunctional Micro‐Force Sensor

Multifunctional micro‐force sensing in one device is an urgent need for the higher integration of the smaller flexible electronic device toward wearable health‐monitoring equipment, intelligent robotics, and efficient human–machine interface. Herein, a novel microchannel‐confined MXene‐based flexible piezoresistive sensor is demonstrated to simultaneously achieve multi‐types micro‐force sensing of pressure, sound, and acceleration. Benefiting from the synergistically confined effect of the fingerprint‐microstructured channel and the accordion‐microstructured MXene materials, the as‐designed sensor remarkably endows a low detection limit of 9 Pa, a high sensitivity of 99.5 kPa^?1, and a fast response time of 4 ms, as well as non‐attenuating durability over 10 000 cycles. Moreover, the fabricated sensor is multifunctionally capable of sensing sounds, micromotion, and acceleration in one device. Evidently, such a multifunctional sensing characteristic can highlight the bright prospect of the microchannel‐confined MXene‐based micro‐force sensor for the higher integration of flexible electronics.     

A Low‐Cost,Self‐Standing NiCo2O4@CNT/CNT Multilayer Electrode for Flexible Asymmetric Solid‐State Supercapacitors

The demand for a new generation of flexible, portable, and high‐capacity power sources increases rapidly with the development of advanced wearable electronic devices. Here we report a simple process for large‐scale fabrication of self‐standing composite film electrodes composed of NiCo₂O₄@carbon nanotube (CNT) for supercapacitors. Among all composite electrodes prepared, the one fired in air displays the best electrochemical behavior, achieving a specific capacitance of 1,590 F g^?1 at 0.5 A g^?1 while maintaining excellent stability. The NiCo₂O₄@CNT/CNT film electrodes are fabricated via stacking NiCo₂O₄@CNT and CNT alternately through vacuum filtration. Lightweight, flexible, and self‐standing film electrodes (≈24.3 µm thick) exhibit high volumetric capacitance of 873 F cm^?3 (with an areal mass of 2.5 mg cm^?2) at 0.5 A g^?1. An all‐solid‐state asymmetric supercapacitor consists of a composite film electrode and a treated carbon cloth electrode has not only high energy density (≈27.6 Wh kg^?1) at 0.55 kW kg^?1 (including the weight of the two electrodes) but also excellent cycling stability (retaining ≈95% of the initial capacitance after 5000 cycles), demonstrating the potential for practical application in wearable devices.     

MXene Functionalized,Highly Breathable and Sensitive Pressure Sensors with Multi-Layered Porous Structure

Breathable, flexible, and highly sensitive pressure sensors have drawn increasing attention due to their potential in wearable electronics for body-motion monitoring, human-machine interfaces, etc. However, current pressure sensors are usually assembled with polymer substrates or encapsulation layers, thus causing discomfort during wearing (i.e., low air/vapor permeability, mechanical mismatch) and restricting their applications. A breathable and flexible pressure sensor is reported with nonwoven fabrics as both the electrode (printed with MXene interdigitated electrode) and sensing (coated with MXene/silver nanowires) layers via a scalable screen-printing approach. Benefiting from the multi-layered porous structure, the sensor demonstrates good air permeability with high sensitivity (770.86–1434.89 kPa⁻¹), a wide sensing range (0–100 kPa), fast response/recovery time (70/81 ms), and low detection limit (≈1 Pa). Particularly, this sensor can detect full-scale human motion (i.e., small-scale pulse beating and large-scale walking/running) with high sensitivity, excellent cycling stability, and puncture resistance. Additionally, the sensing layer of the pressure sensor also displays superior sensitivity to humidity changes, which is verified by successfully monitoring human breathing and spoken words while wearing a sensor-embedded mask. Given the outstanding features, this breathable sensor shows promise in the wearable electronic field for body health monitoring, sports activity detection, and disease diagnosis.     

Methane-Sensing Performance Enhancement in Graphene Oxide/Mg:ZnO Heterostructure Devices

Methane-sensing using reduced doped graphene oxide (rGO)/Mg:ZnO heterostructure devices is reported here. All samples are tested with CH₄ in dry air ambient by a gas-analyzing set-up. Crystallinity of the sensing film is improved through annealing treatment (at 800°C). The active device area (i.e., the rGO and rGO/Mg:ZnO heterostructures) are characterized using scanning electron microscope imaging, x-ray diffraction, and x-ray spectroscopy measurements. Electrical performance of the fabricated device is optimized. rGO/Mg:ZnO heterostructures are substantially more sensitive and have better transient response than bare rGO-based sensor devices. All fundamental parameters such as sensitivity and response–recovery time are examined and reported in detail.     

Highly sustainable mechanical/electrical resistance switching behaviors via one-dimensional Ag/TiO2 core-shell resistive switchable materials in flexible composite

Composite-based resistance switching random access memory (ReRAM) has great potential for application in flexible and wearable electronics. However, its large operating parameters and low reliability still have some limitations in realizing practical applications, which is derived from its high dependence on the orientation and dispersion of the filler in the composite layer. Here, we proposed a novel composite system that does not depend heavily on the orientation or dispersion of the fillers within the composite film of the ReRAM device. The AgNW/TiO₂ core-shell nanowires inducing superb resistance switching behavior were fabricated. The composite resistance switching (RS) film was prepared by mixing the one-dimensional core-shell particles and poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA) dielectric matrix. The composite RS film exhibited remarkable resistance switching behavior with extremely low/uniform operating voltage (V_set ~ 0.13 ± 0.013 V, and V_reset ~ −0.10 ± 0.012 V), and the reliable switching behavior was maintained for up to ~200,000 mechanical deformation cycles under 3 mm of bending radius. To evaluate the resistance switching mechanism of the composite-type ReRAM, the structural analysis and device modeling were performed.     

Highly Sensitive,Wearable, Durable Strain Sensors and Stretchable Conductors Using Graphene/Silicon Rubber Composites

Highly sensitive, wearable and durable strain sensors are vital to the development of health monitoring systems, smart robots and human machine interfaces. The recent sensor fabrication progress is respectable, but it is limited by complexity, low sensitivity and unideal service life. Herein a facile, cost‐effective and scalable method is presented for the development of high‐performance strain sensors and stretchable conductors based on a composite film consisting of graphene platelets (GnPs) and silicon rubber. Through calculation by the tunneling theory using experimental data, the composite film has demonstrated ideal linear and reproducible sensitivity to tensile strains, which is contributed by the superior piezoresistivity of GnPs having tunable gauge factors 27.7–164.5. The composite sensors fabricated in different days demonstrate pretty similar performance, enabling applications as a health‐monitoring device to detect various human motions from finger bending to pulse. They can be used as electronic skin, a vibration sensor and a human‐machine interface controller. Stretchable conductors are made by coating and encapsulating GnPs with polydimethyl siloxane to create another composite; this structure allows the conductor to be readily bent and stretched with sufficient mechanical robustness and cyclability.     

Polymer Template Synthesis of Flexible BaTiO3 Crystal Nanofibers

BaTiO₃ crystals are attractive materials due to their high dielectric properties, but they are brittle and inelastic ceramics, which limits their broader applications in emerging fields, such as flexible electronics. A scalable strategy for the fabrication of ultra‐flexible crystalline BaTiO₃ nanofiber (NF) films by a sol–gel electrospinning method, followed by a brief calcination, is reported. It facilitates the formation of perovskite BaTiO₃ crystals with intricate grain boundaries at a low temperatures by growing them within polymer NF templates. The ceramic films have a polymer‐like softness of 50 mN, a large Young's modulus of 61 MPa, and an elastic strain of 0.9%. Moreover, they have a low density of 28 mg cm^?3 and demonstrate superior softness without fracture after deformation. Piezoelectric sensors fabricated based on these films exhibit a high sensitivity of 80 ms with an output voltage of 1.05 V at a pressure of 100 kPa. This approach allows for the large‐scale fabrication of flexible BaTiO₃ crystal NF films.     

Stretchable,Washable, and Ultrathin Triboelectric Nanogenerators as Skin-Like Highly Sensitive Self-Powered Haptic Sensors

Accompanying the boom in multifunctional wearable electronics, flexible, sustainable, and wearable power sources are facing great challenges. Here, a stretchable, washable, and ultrathin skin-inspired triboelectric nanogenerator (SI-TENG) to harvest human motion energy and act as a highly sensitive self-powered haptic sensor is reported. With the optimized material selections and structure design, the SI-TENG is bestowed with some merits, such as stretchability ( ≈ 800%), ultrathin ( ≈ 89 µ m), and light-weight ( ≈ 0.23 g), which conformally attach on human skin without disturbing its contact. A stretchable composite electrode, which is formed by homogenously intertwining silver nanowires (AgNWs) with thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) nanofiber networks, is fabricated through synchronous electrospinning of TPU and electrospraying of AgNWs. Based on the triboelectrification effect, the open-circuit voltage, short-circuit current, and power density of the SI-TENG with a contact area of 2 × 2 cm² and an applied force of 8 N can reach 95 V, 0.3 µ A, and 6 mW m⁻², respectively. By integrating the signal-processing circuits, the SI-TENG with excellent energy harvesting and self-powered sensing capability is demonstrated as a haptic sensor array to detect human actions. The SI-TENG exhibits extensive applications in the fields of human–machine interface and security systems.     

Mimicking Human and Biological Skins for Multifunctional Skin Electronics

Electronic skin (e‐skin) technology is an exciting frontier to drive the next generation of wearable electronics owing to its high level of wearability, enabling high accuracy to harvest information of users and their surroundings. Recently, biomimicry of human and biological skins has become a great inspiration for realizing novel wearable electronic systems with exceptional multifunctionality as well as advanced sensory functions. This review covers and highlights bioinspired e‐skins mimicking perceptive features of human and biological skins. In particular, five main components in tactile sensation processes of human skin are individually discussed with recent advances of e‐skins that mimic the unique sensing mechanisms of human skin. In addition, diverse functionalities in user‐interactive, skin‐attachable, and ultrasensitive e‐skins are introduced with the inspiration from unique architectures and functionalities, such as visual expression of stimuli, reversible adhesion, easy deformability, and camouflage, in biological skins of natural creatures. Furthermore, emerging wearable sensor systems using bioinspired e‐skins for body motion tracking, healthcare monitoring, and prosthesis are described. Finally, several challenges that should be considered for the realization of next‐generation skin electronics are discussed with recent outcomes for addressing these challenges.     

Flexible Transparent Reduced Graphene Oxide Sensor Coupled with Organic Dye Molecules for Rapid Dual‐Mode Ammonia Gas Detection

Flexible chemical sensors utilizing chemically sensitive nanomaterials are of great interest for wearable sensing applications. However, obtaining high performance flexible chemical sensors with high sensitivity, fast response, transparency, stability, and workability at ambient conditions is still challenging. Herein, a newly designed flexible and transparent chemical sensor of reduced graphene oxide (R‐GO) coupled with organic dye molecules (bromophenol blue) is introduced. This device has promising properties such as high mechanical flexibility (>5000 bending cycles with a bending radius of 0.95 cm) and optical transparency (>60% in the visible region). Furthermore, stacking the water‐trapping dye layer on R‐GO enables a higher response as well as workability in a large relative humidity range (up to 80%), and dual‐mode detection capabilities of colorimetric and electrical sensing for NH₃ gas (5–40 ppm). These advantageous attributes of the flexible and transparent R‐GO sensor coupled with organic dye molecules provide great potential for real‐time monitoring of toxic gas/vapor in future practical chemical sensing at room conditions in wearable electronics.     

Large‐Area,Flexible Broadband Photodetector Based on ZnS–MoS2 Hybrid on Paper Substrate

Flexible broadband photodetectors based on 2D MoS₂ have gained significant attention due to their superior light absorption and increased light sensitivity. However, pristine MoS₂ has absorption only in visible and near IR spectrum. This paper reports a paper‐based broadband photodetector having ZnS–MoS₂ hybrids as active sensing material fabricated using a simple, cost effective two‐step hydrothermal method wherein trilayer MoS₂ is grown on cellulose paper followed by the growth of ZnS on MoS₂. Optimization in terms of process parameters is done to yield uniform trilayer MoS₂ on cellulose paper. UV sensing property of ZnS and broadband absorption of MoS₂ in visible and IR, broadens the range from UV to near IR. ZnS plays the dual role for absorption in UV and in the generation of local electric fields, thereby increasing the sensitivity of the sensor. The fabricated photodetector exhibits a higher responsivity toward the visible light when compared to UV and IR light. Detailed studies in terms of energy band diagram are presented to understand the charge transport mechanism. This represents the first demonstration of a paper‐based flexible broadband photodetector with excellent photoresponsivity and high bending capability that can be used for wearable electronics, flexible security, and surveillance systems, etc.     

Boosting Piezoelectricity by 3D Printing PVDF-MoS2 Composite as a Conformal and High-Sensitivity Piezoelectric Sensor

Additively manufactured flexible and high-performance piezoelectric devices are highly desirable for sensing and energy harvesting of 3D conformal structures. Herein, the study reports a significantly enhanced piezoelectricity in polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) achieved through the in situ dipole alignment of PVDF within PVDF-2D molybdenum disulfide (2D MoS₂) composite by 3D printing. The shear stress-induced dipole poling of PVDF and 2D MoS₂ alignment are harnessed during 3D printing to boost piezoelectricity without requiring a post-poling process. The results show a remarkable, more than the eight-fold increment in the piezoelectric coefficient (d₃₃) for 3D printed PVDF-8wt.% MoS₂ composite over cast neat PVDF. The underlying mechanism of piezoelectric property enhancement is attributed to the increased volume fraction of β phase in PVDF, filler fraction, heterogeneous strain distribution around PVDF-MoS₂ interfaces, and strain transfer to the nanofillers as confirmed by microstructural analysis and finite element simulation. These results provide a promising route to design and fabricate high-performance 3D piezoelectric devices via 3D printing for next-generation sensors and mechanical–electronic conformal devices.