Flexible and Transparent Pressure/Temperature Sensors Based on Ionogels with Bioinspired Interlocked Microstructures

Abstract

Bioinspired by the interlocked geometry between the epidermal-dermal layers of natural skin, here we design a flexible and transparent (94.2%) skin-like sensor with an interlocked hexagonal microcolumn array structure based on ionogels of ionic liquids (ILs) and thermoplastic polyurethane (TPU) assisted by laser-etched silicon wafers. Attributed to the bioinspired microstructure, the resulting interlocked TPU@IL ionogel sensor exhibits outstanding pressure-sensing properties, which has an ultralow detection limit (∼10 Pa) and ultrafast responsiveness (∼24 ms). Interestingly, it is worth noting that the interlocked TPU@IL ionogel sensor also has high temperature-sensing performance because of the dependence of the ionic conductivity of ILs on the temperature, which can accurately detect a slight temperature change (0.1 °C). Moreover, the interlocked TPU@IL ionogel sensor can also serve as the strain sensor in the strain range of 0.1-10%. Attributed to the intrinsically antibacterial effect of ILs, the interlocked TPU@IL ionogel sensor possesses an antibacterial function, which is a desired merit of wearable electronics and devices. The current study provides a novel strategy to manufacture transparent, flexible, and antimicrobial e-skin sensors with multiple sensing capabilities, which may inspire more future research studies for e-skins.