Nylon Fabric Enabled Tough and Flaw Insensitive Stretchable Electronics

Abstract

The architecture of stretchable electronics, typically in the fashion of very thin functional electronics on a stretchable rubber substrate, defines their mechanical robustness which is dominantly attributed to the stretchable rubber substrate. Most of the existing and reported stretchable electronics are vulnerable to flaws or cracks in the substrate and subject to fracture upon mechanical deformation, which limits their practical usages. Here, a class of tough and flaw insensitive stretchable electronics enabled by a Nylon/rubber composite substrate is reported. The woven and stretchable fibers in the Nylon fabric are responsible for its high toughness and flaw insensitivity, as they prevent crack propagation by dissipating the energy into the nearby fiber network and also the rubber matrix to yield enhanced toughness and flaw insensitivity. Stretchable electrodes, supercapacitors, and photodetectors with high toughness and flaw insensitivity are developed as examples to illustrate the validity of such a type of stretchable electronics. Systematic studies of the associated materials, fabrication, mechanical and electrical properties, and reliability illustrate the key aspects of such a type of stretchable tough and flaw insensitive electronics and also suggest routes toward stretchable electronics with other functions.