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In this work we present graphene-based in-plane flexible interdigitated micro-supercapacitor devices fabricated through direct laser writing onto ultra-thin graphite oxide (GO) films.

Defects induced by liquid-phase exfoliation of graphite using sonication were studied. It was shown that localized impact by cavitation shock waves can produce bulk ripplocations and various types of dislocations in graphite nanoplatelets. Formation of ripples is more pronounced in large aspect (length/width) ratio platelets or nanobelts. Quasi-periodical ripple systems were observed in many nanobelts after sonication. Mechanism of formation of ripples and dislocations during sonication was proposed. Surprisingly, fast high-temperature processing was found to anneal most of defects. This is consistent with our observations that defects associated with ripplocations are strongly localized and thus can be fast annealed. (Stanislav Moshkalev)

A simple and scalable method was developed for the fabrication of wearable strain and bending sensors, based on high aspect ratio (length/thickness ∼10(3)) graphite nanobelt thin films deposited by a modified Langmuir-Blodgett technique onto flexible polymer substrates. The sensing mechanism is based on the changes in contact resistance between individual nanobelts upon substrate deformation. Very high sensor response stability for more than 5000 strain-release cycles and a device power consumption as low as 1 nW were achieved. The device maximum stretchability is limited by the metal electrodes and the polymer substrate; the maximum strain that could be applied to the polymer used in this work was 40%. Bending tests carried out for various radii of curvature demonstrated distinct sensor responses for positive and negative curvatures. The graphite nanobelt thin flexible films were successfully tested for acoustic vibration and heartbeat sensing.