Highly Conductive Graphene/Ag Hybrid Fibers for Flexible Fiber-Type Transistors

Abstract

Mechanically robust, flexible, and electrically conductive textiles are highly suitable for use in wearable electronic applications. In this study, highly conductive and flexible graphene/Ag hybrid fibers were prepared and used as electrodes for planar and fiber-type transistors. The graphene/Ag hybrid fibers were fabricated by the wet-spinning/drawing of giant graphene oxide and subsequent functionalization with Ag nanoparticles. The graphene/Ag hybrid fibers exhibited record-high electrical conductivity of up to 15,800 S cm−1. As the graphene/Ag hybrid fibers can be easily cut and placed onto flexible substrates by simply gluing or stitching, ion gel-gated planar transistors were fabricated by using the hybrid fibers as source, drain, and gate electrodes. Finally, fiber-type transistors were constructed by embedding the graphene/Ag hybrid fiber electrodes onto conventional polyurethane monofilaments, which exhibited excellent flexibility (highly bendable and rollable properties), high electrical performance (μh = 15.6 cm2 V−1 s−1, Ion/Ioff > 104), and outstanding device performance stability (stable after 1,000 cycles of bending tests and being exposed for 30 days to ambient conditions). We believe that our simple methods for the fabrication of graphene/Ag hybrid fiber electrodes for use in fiber-type transistors can potentially be applied to the development all-organic wearable devices.

Flexible Textile-Based Organic Transistors Using Graphene/Ag Nanoparticle Electrode

“…We also used an elastic ion gel layer based on poly(vinylidene fluoride- co -hexafluoropropylene) P(VDF-HFP) and the ionic liquid 1-ethyl-3-methylimidazolium bis(trifluoromethylsulfonyl)amide ([EMI][TFSA]) [11] as both high capacitance gate dielectric layer and mechanically robust transporter for the channel material. After the successive spin-coating of the ion gel and the P3HT layers onto a washed silicon wafer, the double layer was cut with a razor blade and transferred onto the graphene/AgNP electrode on PET textile for direct contact between the dielectric layer and the textile electrode [12]. This procedure provided a convenient and solvent-free route to simultaneously incorporate the active channel and the ion gel layers in the transistors without any contamination of each component.…”

Durable Antimicrobial Behaviour from Silver-Graphene Coated Medical Textile Composites

“…Medicom Safe Gauze Swab (sterile, non-woven) substrates, comprising 70% viscose-30% polyester, were used. The highly porous matrix of the non-woven polyviscose fabric structure, comprising wrinkled fibers, allows a higher surface area for the adsorption of more silver precursor, and, in turn, acts as a template for AgNP synthesis [57]. Chemicals used as-received in the synthesis were ethanol (EtOH, 95%, VWR, Shanghai, China), graphite (Acros), hydrochloric acid (HCl, Sigma Aldrich Shanghai, China, 37%), hydrogen peroxide (H 2 O 2 , 30%, AWR, Shanghai, China), nitric acid (HNO 3 , Sigma Aldrich, 65%), silver nitrate (AgNO 3 , ILA, 98.8+%), sodium nitrite (NaNO 2 , Sigma Aldrich, Shanghai, China), sulfuric acid (H 2 SO 4 , 95%, VWR, Shanghai, China), and deionised water (18 MΩ), in all cases.…”

Fabrication of graphene‐silver/polyurethane nanofibrous scaffolds for cardiac tissue engineering

“…High antibacterial and antifungal activity of reduced graphene oxide‐silver (rGO‐Ag) nanocomposite can be used to decrease infection risk in tissue engineering. On the other hand, these nanocomposites are highly electrically conductive, which are used as connective ink in writing electronics and flexible fiber transistors . On the other hand, The PU‐based scaffolds, with a variety of shapes and dimensions, have been used severally in cardiac tissue engineering in vivo and in vitro .…”