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Magnetically induced micropillar arrays for an ultrasensitive flexible sensor with a wireless recharging system

基于磁诱导微柱阵列可无线充电的超灵敏柔性传感器

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Abstract

Significant efforts have been devoted to enhancing the sensitivity and working range of flexible pressure sensors to improve the precise measurement of subtle variations in pressure over a wide detection spectrum. However, achieving sensitivities exceeding 1000 kPa−1 while maintaining a pressure working range over 100 kPa is still challenging because of the limited intrinsic properties of soft matrix materials. Here, we report a magnetic field-induced porous elastomer with micropillar arrays (MPAs) as sensing materials and a well-patterned nickel fabric as an electrode. The developed sensor exhibits an ultrahigh sensitivity of 10,268 kPa−1 (0.6–170 kPa) with a minimum detection pressure of 0.25 Pa and a fast response time of 3 ms because of the unique structure of the MPAs and the textured morphology of the electrode. The porous elastomer provides an extended working range of up to 500 kPa with long-time durability. The sophisticated sensor system coupled with an integrated wireless recharging system comprising a flexible supercapacitor and inductive coils for transmission achieves excellent performance. Thus, a diverse range of practical applications requiring a low-to-high pressure range sensing can be developed. Our strategy, which combines a microstructured high-performance sensor device with a wireless recharging system, provides a basis for creating next-generation flexible electronics.

摘要

为实现在宽感知范围内对微小压力变化的精确测量, 提高柔性压力传感器的灵敏度和工作范围显得尤为迫切. 然而, 由于柔性传感器所使用的软基质材料的固有局限, 实现超过100 kPa工作范 围同时维持1000 kPa−1以上的灵敏度仍然是一项挑战. 本文报道了一种磁诱导的多孔弹性体(PDMS), 分别以微柱阵列(MPA)作为传感材料和具有编织结构的导电镍作为电极. 由于MPA的独特结构和电极的织构形态, 所开发的传感器具有10,268 kPa−1(0.6–170 kPa 范围内) 的超高灵敏度, 高达500 kPa的工作范围, 并具有长期耐用性. 并实现了最小0.25 Pa的检测压力和3 ms的响应时间. 此外, 将柔性传感器、 柔性超级电容器和感应线圈进行一体化集成, 实现了对传感器的无线能量传输, 并在低压至高压范围内对传感实际应用能力进行了测试. 本项研究工作将具有微结构的高性能传感器与无线充电系统结合在一起, 为开发下一代柔性电子产品提供了 一种新颖的方法.

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Acknowledgements

This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (61904141), the Funding of the Natural Science Foundation of Shaanxi Province (2020JQ-295), China Postdoctoral Science Foundation (2020M673340), the Key Research and Development Program of Shaanxi (2020GY-252), and the National Key Laboratory of Science and Technology on Vacuum Technology and Physics (HTKJ2019KL510007).

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  1. These authors contributed equally to this paper.

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Mechano-Electronic Engineering, Xidian University, Xi’an, 710071, China

    Libo Gao  (高立波), Ke Cao  (曹可), Hongcheng Xu  (徐洪成), Xinkang Hu  (胡新康), Mingzhi Wang  (王明智), Kangqi Fan  (樊康旗) & Weidong Wang  (王卫东)

  2. CityU-Xidian Joint Laboratory of Micro/Nano-Manufacturing, Shenzhen, 518057, China

    Libo Gao  (高立波), Ke Cao  (曹可), Hongcheng Xu  (徐洪成), Xinkang Hu  (胡新康), Mingzhi Wang  (王明智), Kangqi Fan  (樊康旗) & Weidong Wang  (王卫东)

  3. Nano-Manufacturing Laboratory (NML), Shenzhen Research Institute of City University of Hong Kong, Shenzhen, 518057, China

    Libo Gao  (高立波), Wenzhao Zhou  (周文钊) & Yuejiao Wang  (王月皎)

  4. Department of Mechanical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong, Kowloon, Hong Kong SAR, 999077, China

    Ying Han  (韩英), James Utama Surjadi & Yuejiao Wang  (王月皎)

  5. Department of Mechanical Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, 60208, USA

    Weidong Wang  (王卫东) & Horacio D. Espinosa

  6. Theoretical and Applied Mechanics Program, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, 60208, USA

    Horacio D. Espinosa

Authors
  1. Libo Gao  (高立波)
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  2. Ying Han  (韩英)
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  3. James Utama Surjadi
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  4. Ke Cao  (曹可)
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  11. Weidong Wang  (王卫东)
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  12. Horacio D. Espinosa
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Contributions

Author contributions Gao L designed and fabricated the samples, conducted the experiments, analyzed the data, and wrote the manuscript. Han Y analyzed the data, conducted the experiments, and drafted a part of the manuscript. Surjadi JU wrote a part of the manuscript and revised it. Zhou W wrote a part of the manuscript, and Cao K performed the SEM experiments. Gao L, Wang W, and Espinosa HD led this project. All authors reviewed and approved the final version of the paper.

Corresponding authors

Correspondence to Libo Gao  (高立波), Weidong Wang  (王卫东) or Horacio D. Espinosa.

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Conflict of interest These authors declare no conflict of interest.

Additional information

Libo Gao received his PhD degree from the City University of Hong Kong (CityU) in 2018. He continued working as a Research Assistant at CityU before he joined Xidian University. Now he is an associate professor at Xidian University. His research mainly focuses on intelligent micro/nano electronic devices and micro systems.

Ying Han received her Bachelor’s degree from Tianjin University in 2017. Now she is a PhD candidate at the Department of Mechanical Engineering, City University of Hong Kong. Her research focuses on nanomechanics of low-dimensional materials and hierarchical structures such as hierarchically micro-structured sensor devices.

Weidong Wang received his BSc, MSc and PhD degrees in mechanical engineering from Xidian University, where he is currently a professor and the director of the Research Center of Micro-Nano Systems. His research interests include MEMS/NEMS, micro-nano manufacturing, and micro-nano mechanics.

Horacio D. Espinosa received his PhD degree from Brown University. Now he is a professor at the Northwestern University. His research mainly focuses on the mechanical behavior of natural and synthetic nanomaterials and micro/nano devices for materials research and personalized medicine.

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Gao, L., Han, Y., Surjadi, J.U. et al. Magnetically induced micropillar arrays for an ultrasensitive flexible sensor with a wireless recharging system. Sci. China Mater. 64, 1977–1988 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s40843-020-1637-9

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