Ultralow Power Consumption Coaxial-Structured Electrophoretic Display Fibers with Stretchability and Environmental Adaptability

Abstract

Lightweight and flexible fiber devices are currently attracting significant interest in the field of advanced wearable electronics. However, many electroluminescent fiber devices suffer from high operating voltage and power consumption. To address this issue, a novel low-power-consumption coaxial electrophoretic display fiber (EPDF) with low-power-consumption, which consists of silver nanowire electrodes, electrophoretic microcapsule layer, polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) encapsulation layer and PDMS substrate, was fabricated using a simple dip-coating method. The prepared fiber devices exhibit full functionality under a human-safe voltage of 30 V, featuring uniform and angle-independent contrast. Moreover, the EPDFs demonstrate excellent flexibility and mechanical stability, capable of operating properly at axial strains exceeding 50% and maintaining performance after 1000 cycles of 30% strain. The EPDFs, encapsulated with transparent PDMS, demonstrating exceptional wearability and biocompatibility. Benefiting from the distinctive bistable characteristics of electrophoretic microcapsule particles, EPDFs exhibit ultralow power consumption, and the varying light absorption capacities in different display states empower them to adapt effectively to diverse environments. These remarkable features qualify EPDFs for various outdoor wearable applications. Finally, a proof-of-concept of electrophoretic display fabric is demonstrated by weaving the as-prepared fiber with common yarn, showcasing the future perspective of wearable functional textiles entirely woven from EPD.

Graphical Abstract