Piezoelectric Ribbons Printed onto Rubber for Flexible Energy Conversion
Abstract
The development of a method for integrating highly efficient energy conversion materials onto stretchable, biocompatible rubbers could yield breakthroughs in implantable or wearable energy harvesting systems. Being electromechanically coupled, piezoelectric crystals represent a particularly interesting subset of smart materials that function as sensors/actuators, bioMEMS devices, and energy converters. Yet, the crystallization of these materials generally requires high temperatures for maximally efficient performance, rendering them incompatible with temperature-sensitive plastics and rubbers. Here, we overcome these limitations by presenting a scalable and parallel process for transferring crystalline piezoelectric nanothick ribbons of lead zirconate titanate from host substrates onto flexible rubbers over macroscopic areas. Fundamental characterization of the ribbons by piezo-force microscopy indicates that their electromechanical energy conversion metrics are among the highest reported on a flexible medium. The excellent performance of the piezo-ribbon assemblies coupled with stretchable, biocompatible rubber may enable a host of exciting avenues in fundamental research and novel applications.
Additional Information
© 2010 American Chemical Society. Received for review: 10/9/2009. Published on Web: 01/26/2010. We thank N. Yao and G. Poirier for useful discussions. M.C.M. acknowledges primary support of this work via the Young Investigator Award from the Intelligence Community (No. 2008*1218103*000).Attached Files
Supplemental Material - nl903377u_si_001.pdf
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Additional details
- Eprint ID
- 17599
- DOI
- 10.1021/nl903377u
- Resolver ID
- CaltechAUTHORS:20100225-165356419
- 2008*1218103*000
- Young Investigator Award from the Intelligence Community
- Created
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2010-02-26Created from EPrint's datestamp field
- Updated
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2021-11-08Created from EPrint's last_modified field