Field emission properties of carbon nanotubes in a stretchable polydimethylsiloxane matrix

The stretchable conducting films are fabricated by screen-printing method combined with polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) infiltration. This film is a hybrid composite film formed by embedding carbon nanotubes in a PDMS matrix. The sheet resistance is measured with the tensile strain, and the film maintains electric conductivity at the strain up to 55%. The composite film is used as cathode to measure the field emission properties under varying stretching conditions, which is sensitive to the strain. Through the images of field emission scanning electron microscope, the formed pinholes on the surface are found to be contributed to the change in field emission performance. (c) 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.