Microstructured Silicone Substrate for Printable and Stretchable Metallic Films

Robinson, Andrew; Minev, Ivan R.; Graz, Ingrid; Lacour, Stéphanie

doi:10.1021/la103213n

Cited by 69 publications

(48 citation statements)

References 25 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Unfortunately, elastomeric substrates normally possess low melting points and high hydrophobicity, complicating fabrication processes based on lithography or inkjet printing. Accordingly, modifications in the fabrication techniques [88][89][90] , material substitutions 14,91 , and alternative designs 92,93 have been developed, eventually resulting in flexible soft substrates with improved stretchability and electrical conductivity. Another interesting alternative to all these fabrication techniques is the age-old fabrication process, that is, weaving.…”

Section: Sensor Fabricationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Emerging flexible and wearable physical sensing platforms for healthcare and biomedical applications

2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

There are now numerous emerging flexible and wearable sensing technologies that can perform a myriad of physical and physiological measurements. Rapid advances in developing and implementing such sensors in the last several years have demonstrated the growing significance and potential utility of this unique class of sensing platforms. Applications include wearable consumer electronics, soft robotics, medical prosthetics, electronic skin, and health monitoring. In this review, we provide a state-ofthe-art overview of the emerging flexible and wearable sensing platforms for healthcare and biomedical applications. We first introduce the selection of flexible and stretchable materials and the fabrication of sensors based on these materials. We then compare the different solid-state and liquid-state physical sensing platforms and examine the mechanical deformation-based working mechanisms of these sensors. We also highlight some of the exciting applications of flexible and wearable physical sensors in emerging healthcare and biomedical applications, in particular for artificial electronic skins, physiological health monitoring and assessment, and therapeutic and drug delivery. Finally, we conclude this review by offering some insight into the challenges and opportunities facing this field.

show abstract

Section: Sensor Fabricationmentioning

confidence: 99%

Emerging flexible and wearable physical sensing platforms for healthcare and biomedical applications

2016

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…This is especially problematic with silicones, which have a very low surface energy and present highly hydrophobic surfaces. Different surface treatments (plasma activation, UV exposure) can help to temporarily increase the surface energy, and Robinson et al have recently demonstrated how the wetting of a silicone substrate by a solvent-based ink can be improved by structuring the silicone substrate with micropillars [45]. The ink's evaporation rate must be controlled so as to avoid the "coffee stain" effect, which is caused by the motion of the ink's solid content to the periphery of the droplet, leading to a non-uniform coating once the layer is dry.…”

Section: Printing Techniquesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Flexible and stretchable electrodes for dielectric elastomer actuators

2012

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Dielectric elastomer actuators (DEAs) are flexible lightweight actuators that can generate strains of over 100%. They are used in applications ranging from haptic feedback (mm-sized devices), to cm-scale soft robots, to meter-long blimps. DEAs consist of an electrode-elastomer-electrode stack, placed on a frame. Applying a voltage between the electrodes electrostatically compresses the elastomer, which deforms in-plane or out-of plane depending on design. Since the electrodes are bonded to the elastomer, they must reliably sustain repeated very large deformations while remaining conductive, and without significantly adding to the stiffness of the soft elastomer. The electrodes are required for electrostatic actuation, but also enable resistive and capacitive sensing of the strain, leading to self-sensing actuators. This review compares the different technologies used to make compliant electrodes for DEAs in terms of: impact on DEA device performance (speed, efficiency, maximum strain), manufacturability, miniaturization, the integration of self-sensing and selfswitching, and compatibility with low-voltage operation. While graphite and carbon black have been the most widely used technique in research environments, alternative methods are emerging which combine compliance, conduction at over 100% strain with better conductivity and/or ease of patternability, including microfabrication-based approaches for compliant metal thin-films, metal-polymer nano-composites, nanoparticle implantation, and reel-to-reel production of µm-scale patterned thin films on elastomers. Such electrodes are key to miniaturization, low-voltage operation, and widespread commercialization of DEAs.

show abstract

“…The absolute resistance increased by a factor 2.75 when stretched to 10% over 1000 cycles. Robinson et al 10 has shown that highly conductive lines can be produced by printing silver ink onto a micro-structured silicone substrate. The print lines were shown to have a resistance of 140 Ω for a 5mm long conductor with a width of 210 µm, a sheet resistance of approximately 5.9 Ω/□.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Inkjet printing of carbon black electrodes for dielectric elastomer actuators

2017

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Inkjet printing is an appealing technique to print electrodes for Dielectric Elastomer Actuators (DEAs). Here we present the preparation and ink-jet printing of a carbon black electrode mixture and characterise its properties. Carbon black has been used extensively in the past because it is very compliant; however, it has a high resistance and can be very dirty to work with. In this paper we show that carbon black remains an appropriate electrode material, and when inkjet printed can be used to fabricate devices meeting today's demanding requirements. DEAs are becoming thinner to decrease actuation voltages and are shrinking in size to match the scale of the devices in the biomedical field, tuneable optics, and microfluidics. Inkjet printing addresses both of these problems. Firstly, Inkjet printing is a non-contact technique and can print on very thin freestanding membranes. Secondly, the high precision of inkjet printers makes it possible to print complex electrode geometries in the millimetre scale. We demonstrate the advantages of inkjet printing and carbon black electrodes by conducting a full characterisation of the printed electrodes. The printed carbon black electrodes have resistances as low as 13kΩ/□, an elastic modulus of approximately 1MPa, and a cyclic resistance swing which increases by 7% over 1500 cycles at 50% stretch. We also demonstrate a DEA with printed carbon black electrodes with a diametral stretch of 8.8% at an electric field of approximately 94V/µm. Finally a qualitative test is conducted to show that the printed carbon black electrode is extremely hardwearing.

show abstract

Microstructured Silicone Substrate for Printable and Stretchable Metallic Films

Cited by 69 publications

References 25 publications

Emerging flexible and wearable physical sensing platforms for healthcare and biomedical applications

Emerging flexible and wearable physical sensing platforms for healthcare and biomedical applications

Flexible and stretchable electrodes for dielectric elastomer actuators

Inkjet printing of carbon black electrodes for dielectric elastomer actuators

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About