A Skin-Like Self-Powered Flexible Sensor for Wearable Monitoring and Robotic Tactile Application

Abstract

The applications of flexible sensors that can mimic biological skin have enormous potential in areas, such as artificial intelligence and healthcare detection. The existing rigid/flexible pressure sensors mainly rely on resistive or capacitive sensors, necessitating a continuous external power supply. The current self-powered sensors, such as triboelectric and piezoelectric, struggle to continuously measure static forces. Some piezoelectric sensors can detect static forces but require additional power or external resistors for static measurements. Developing a flexible sensor that can monitor various external stimuli like skin and does not require power can address these shortcomings. This article proposes a single-mode flexible pressure sensor based on the principle of air battery. By introducing different structures to the cathode and solid electrolyte of the battery, the sensor’s linearity and pressure detection range can be significantly improved. The sensor’s linearity exceeds 99% under pressures ranging from 0 to 45 kPa, with a response time of less than 50 ms. Besides, self-powered sensor can work continuously for over eight days. Testing shows that the sensor can mimic the functions of rapid adaptive (RA), slow adaptive (SA) cutaneous mechanoreceptors, and Krause corpuscles to detect mechanical stimuli and temperature. This work introduces novel strategy to enhance the performance of battery powered self-powered sensors, with anticipated applications in areas, such as medical health detection and artificial intelligence.