3D-printed endoplasmic reticulum rGO microstructure based self-powered triboelectric pressure sensor

Developing new generation of self-powered triboelectric sensors is urgent in the application of Internet of things (IoT) with low-power consumption. However, the traditional triboelectric pressure sensors demonstrate narrow detection range and are used to be less sensitive in large pressure range. In this work, a 3D-printed endoplasmic reticulum rGO microstructure based self-powered triboelectric pressure sensor (rGO-TPS) has been proposed. By employing PDMS@rGO framework as dielectric layer and spacer, a force-electric coupling model was built to investigate the electromechanical sensing mechanism. Owing to the ultra-low Young's modulus of the 3D-printed materials and designed device structure, the rGO-TPS can reach the sensitivity of 6.28 kPa-1 and broaden highsensitivity region from 0.65 Pa to 10 kPa. Besides, it also improves the sensitivity to 0.61 kPa-1 during the large pressure range from 10 kPa to 140 kPa. It also illustrates a fast response time of 92 ms and great stability of 3,000 cycles without fatigue. In addition, the dynamic pressure response can be monitored by detecting the change of pulse-like short-circuit current signal. Benefiting from the structural advantages and ultra-high performance, several potential applications in gauging water droplets and air flows, and vibration recognition have also been successfully demonstrated. This work provides a promising strategy to promote the progress toward the practical application of self-powered triboelectric pressure sensor.

Automated summary

This study proposes a self-powered triboelectric pressure sensor based on 3D printing technology, which has a large detection range and high sensitivity. The sensor achieves fast response, stability, and high performance through the use of special materials and design structures, and successfully demonstrates the potential applications in measuring water droplets, air flows, and vibration recognition.