Novel conducting fabric polymer composites as stretchable electrodes: one-step fabrication of chemical actuators

Flexible Energy Storage System—An Introductory Review of Textile-Based Flexible Supercapacitors

Recently, researchers have become interested in exploring applications of rechargeable battery storage technology in different disciplines, which can help our daily life, such as textile-based supercapacitors. This paper briefly describes this development and classification of supercapacitors. Besides, various types of materials which are commonly used to prepare supercapacitors, such as carbons, metal oxides, alkaline earth metal salts and polymers, are introduced. Moreover, applications and methodology to prepare textile materials with supercapacitors are described. Finally, the commonly used non-destructive measuring methods for textile-based supercapacitors are also introduced.

A hydrogel-based glucose affinity microsensor

We present a hydrogel-based affinity microsensor for continuous glucose measurements. The microsensor is based on microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) technology, and incorporates a synthetic hydrogel that is attached to the device surface via in situ polymerization. Glucose molecules that diffuses into and out of the device binds reversibly with boronic acid groups in the hydrogel via affinity binding, and causes changes in the dielectric properties of the hydrogel, which can be measured using a MEMS capacitive transducer to determine the glucose concentration. The use of the in situ polymerized hydrogel eliminates mechanical moving parts found in other types of affinity microsensors, as well as mechanical barriers such as semipermeable membranes that are otherwise required to hold the glucose-sensitive material. This facilitates the miniaturization and robust operation of the microsensor, and can potentially improve the tolerance of the device, when implanted subcutaneously, to biofouling. Experimental results demonstrate that in a glucose concentration range of 0-500 mg/dL and with a resolution of 0.35 mg/dL or better, the microsensor exhibits a repeatable and reversible response, and can potentially be useful for continuous glucose monitoring in diabetes care.

Stretchable Thin-Film Electrodes for Flexible Electronics with High Deformability and Stretchability

Flexible and stretchable electronics represent today's cutting-edge electronic technologies. As the most-fundamental component of electronics, the thin-film electrode remains the research frontier due to its key role in the successful development of flexible and stretchable electronic devices. Stretchability, however, is generally more challenging to achieve than flexibility. Stretchable electronic devices demand, above all else, that the thin-film electrodes have the capacity to absorb a large level of strain (>>1%) without obvious changes in their electrical performance. This article reviews the progress in strategies for obtaining highly stretchable thin-film electrodes. Applications of stretchable thin-film electrodes fabricated via these strategies are described. Some perspectives and challenges in this field are also put forward.