Recent Progress in Stretchable Batteries for Wearable Electronics

Abstract

With the rapidly approaching implementation of wearable electronic devices such as implantable devices, stretchable sensors, and healthcare devices, stretchable power sources have aroused worldwide attention as a key component in this emerging field. Among stretchable power sources, batteries, which store electrical energy through redox reactions during charge/discharge processes, are an attractive candidate because of their high energy density, high output voltage, and long‐term stability. In recent years, extensive efforts have been devoted to developing new materials and innovative structural designs for stretchable batteries. This review covers the latest advances in stretchable batteries, focusing on advanced stretchable materials and their design strategies. First, we provide a detailed overview of the materials aspects of components in a stretchable battery, including electrode materials, solid‐state electrolytes, and stretchable separator membranes. Second, we provide an overview on various structural engineering strategies to impart stretchability to batteries (i. e., wavy/buckling structures, island‐bridge structures, and origami/kirigami structures). Third, we summarize recently reported developments in stretchable batteries based on various chemistries, including Li‐based batteries, multivalent‐based batteries, and metal‐air batteries. Finally, we discuss the future perspectives and remaining challenges toward the practical application of stretchable batteries with reliable mechanical robustness and stable electrochemical performance under a physical strain.

F4‐TCNQ as an Additive to Impart Stretchable Semiconductors with High Mobility and Stability

“…Stretchable electronic materials have gained significant attention with the increasing needs for wearable electronics. [ 1–6 ] Several promising applications such as stretchable circuits, [ 7–11 ] displays, [ 12–14 ] and batteries [ 15–21 ] have been successfully demonstrated. For some applications, stretchable transistors provide signal amplification and a switching functionality.…”

Flexible and Wearable Power Sources for Next‐Generation Wearable Electronics

“…To date, several structural engineering strategies toward stretchable battery design have been proposed including wavy structures, island-bridge structures, and origami/kirigami structures. [31,32] At present, most of the reported power supplies based on the aforementioned configuration are handmade which cannot meet the requirement of large-scale industrial production. As a novel assembly scheme, advanced writing and printing technologies show great potential for the realization of industrial manufacture of wearable power systems with intricate and high-resolution architectures.…”

Soft Materials for Wearable/Flexible Electrochemical Energy Conversion, Storage, and Biosensor Devices

“…Lithium-ion batteries are currently preferred in wearable devices because of their environmental-friendly character and superiority to other power sources in terms of electrochemical performance (3.7 V), theoretical capacity (3860 mAh•g −1 ) together with a long cycle life and great safety. Materials science aspects of electrodes, electrolytes, and supports and their engineering to fabricate flexible batteries can be found in several reports [107][108][109][110][111]. The electrodes are the central components of the electrochemical battery because the kinetics and thermodynamics of the redox half-reactions occurring at their surfaces often govern the kinetics of the global process, i.e., the deliverable power.…”