Solution-Derived ZnO Homojunction Nanowire Films on Wearable Substrates for Energy Conversion and Self-Powered Gesture Recognition

Emerging applications in wearable technology, pervasive computing, human-machine interfacing, and implantable biomedical devices demand an appropriate power source that can sustainably operate for extended periods of time with minimal intervention (Wang, Z. L.; et al. Angew. Chem., Int. Ed. 2012, 51, 11700). Self-powered nanosystems, which harvest operating energy from its host (i.e., the human body), may be feasible due to their extremely low power consumption (Tian, B. Z.; et al. Nature 2007, 449, 885. Javey, A.; et al. Nature 2003, 424, 654. Cui, Y.; et al. Science 2001, 291, 851). Here we report materials and designs for wearable-on-skin piezoelectric devices based on ultrathin (2 μm) solution-derived ZnO p-n homojunction films for the first time. The depletion region formed at the p-n homojunction effectively reduces internal screening of strain-induced polarization charges by free carriers in both n-ZnO and Sb-doped p-ZnO, resulting in significantly enhanced piezoelectric output compared to a single layer device. The p-n structure can be further grown on polymeric substrates conformable to a human wrist and used to convert movement of the flexor tendons into distinguishable electrical signals for gesture recognition. The ZnO homojunction piezoelectric devices may have applications in powering nanodevices, bioprobes, and self-powered human-machine interfacing.