Hydrostatic pressure sensor based on carbon sphere - polyvinyl alcohol composites

We report on the preparation of hydrostatic pressure sensors, based on carbon sphere-polyvinyl alcohol composites deposited onto interdigitated electrodes, determining the pressure dependence of the conductance and capacitance of the devices. For these devices, we used carbon spheres with average diameter of 124 +/- 13 nm at concentrations of 20%, 30% and 40%. The highest relative variation of conductance (0.69% kPa (1)) and capacitance (0.24% kPa (1)) was obtained using the composite with 30% carbon spheres. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.