Low-Temperature Solution Processable Electrodes for Piezoelectric Sensors Applications

Abstract

Piezoelectric thin-film sensors are suitable for a wide range of applications from physiological measurements to industrial monitoring systems. The use of flexible materials in combination with high-throughput printing technologies enables cost-effective manufacturing of custom-designed, highly integratable piezoelectric sensors. This type of sensor can, for instance, improve industrial process control or enable the embedding of ubiquitous sensors in our living environment to improve quality of life. Here, we discuss the benefits, challenges and potential applications of piezoelectric thin-film sensors. The piezoelectric sensor elements are fabricated by printing electrodes on both sides of unmetallized poly(vinylidene fluoride) film. We show that materials which are solution processable in low temperatures, biocompatible and environmental friendly are suitable for use as electrode materials in piezoelectric sensors.

Flexible Piezoelectric Energy Harvesting Circuit With Printable Supercapacitor and Diodes

“…According to (3), this translates into 25-μJ energy consumption. The sudden drop is probably related to slow movement of the electrolyte ions in the porous electrodes (high ESR), which restricts the available power, according to (4). The following recovery of the voltage could be due to charge redistribution within the device [24].…”

“…Recently, piezoelectric polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) film sensors with carbon nanotube (CNT) electrodes, printed with a flexographic technique [3], [4], as well as gravure printed organic diodes [5], [6], were reported. Most recently, solutionprocessable supercapacitors from a CNT dispersion were reported [7], [8].…”

Flexible ferroelectric wearable devices for medical applications

“…fabricated various solution-processable materials using poly(3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrene sulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS), as well as composite inks made of carbon nanotubes (CNTs) and carboxymethyl cellulose. The viscosity of the inks used in this study was suitable for gravure and flexographic printed electrodes for ferroelectric thin film sensor development ( Tuukkanen et al., 2013 ).…”

Printable, Transparent, and Flexible Touch Panels Working in Sunlight and Moist Environments

“…The use of conducting polymers, such as poly(3, 4‐ethylenedioxythiophene):poly(styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS), or carbon based nanomaterials, such as graphene and carbon nanotubes (CNT), enable fabrication of flexible or stretchable electrodes for sensor applications . These materials also have their limitations.…”

“…However, flexible, transparent, and water‐proof piezoelectric touch panels have not been reported to date. Piezoelectric polymer films are interesting also for physiological measurements and energy harvesting application . In addition, piezoelectric polymer films have previously been used to manufacture flexible and transparent loudspeakers …”