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All‐Printed Electronic Skin Based on Deformable and Ionic Mechanotransducer Array
Author(s) -
Kim Joo Sung,
Choi Hanbin,
Hwang Hee Jae,
Choi Dukhyun,
Kim Do Hwan
Publication year - 2020
Publication title -
macromolecular bioscience
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.924
H-Index - 105
eISSN - 1616-5195
pISSN - 1616-5187
DOI - 10.1002/mabi.202000147
Subject(s) - mechanotransduction , nanotechnology , ionic bonding , human skin , matrix (chemical analysis) , materials science , biomedical engineering , chemistry , ion , neuroscience , engineering , biology , composite material , genetics , organic chemistry
Mechanoreceptors in human skin possess high sensitivity, wide sensing range, and high sensing resolution for external stimuli. Several attempts have been made to implement electronic skin (e‐skin) that can mimic human skin. However, previous attempts are limited by the fundamental resolution problem arising from the use of film‐like materials generated through pouring and spinning processes. Here, an all‐printed e‐skin based on deformable ionic mechanotransducer array (IMA) inspired by the physiological tactile sensing mechanism and the geometric features of mechanoreceptors in human skin is described. First, an ionic mechanotransduction channel is emulated with a piezocapacitive ionic mechanosensory system that engages in ion migration when the polymer matrix is deformed under a mechanical non‐equilibrium state. Furthermore, the versatile shapes of the artificial mechanotransducer are tuned by the printing process variables, which results in high sensitivity (2.65 nF kPa −1 ) and high resolution (13.22 cm −2 ) of the device. It is demonstrated that this IMA is fully bio‐inspired by the mechanotransduction and papillary structure of the mechanoreceptors. A high‐resolution e‐skin with a deformable and transparent IMA, which is fabricated by an all‐printing methodology, will open up a new market in the field of soft and stretchable sensory platforms.