Hilbert fractal-structured liquid metal electrodes with isotropic stretchability and high conductivity

IF 4.9 3区工程技术 Q2 ENGINEERING, ELECTRICAL & ELECTRONIC

Sensors and Actuators A-physical Pub Date : 2025-09-02 DOI:10.1016/j.sna.2025.117030

Chunge Wang , Ning Zhang , Chen Liu , Niyou Wang , Su Ryon Shin , Zhixin Jia , Yuanyuan Huang , Qianqian Wang , Sheng Zhang

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Abstract

Stretchable electrodes with high conductivity and isotropic strain response are crucial for next-generation wearable electronics but remain challenging to achieve. In this work, a Hilbert fractal microchannel electrode filled with silver-coated copper doped eutectic gallium–indium liquid metal is presented. The fractal geometry provides uniform stress dispersion and balanced mechanical behavior in both principal directions, while the doped liquid metal improves interfacial adhesion and electrical stability. The electrodes exhibit an initial resistance of 0.59 Ω, with relative resistance changes of less than 30 % at 100 % strain in both the X and Y directions. The directional deviation is minimal, with percentage deviation values of 5.78 % at low strain and 1.38 % at high strain. They maintain stable performance after 100 loading cycles and across a temperature range of 20–60 °C, with a conductivity of approximately 7200 S/cm. Demonstrations in LED circuits and wrist-bending tests show nearly identical electromechanical responses under dynamic multidirectional deformation. These results address the persistent trade-off between stretchability and isotropy in flexible conductors and provide a scalable platform for applications in health monitoring, human–machine interfaces, and soft robotics.

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具有各向同性拉伸性和高导电性的希尔伯特分形结构液态金属电极

具有高导电性和各向同性应变响应的可拉伸电极对于下一代可穿戴电子产品至关重要，但仍然具有挑战性。在这项工作中，希尔伯特分形微通道电极填充银包覆铜掺杂共晶镓铟液态金属。分形几何结构在两个主要方向上提供均匀的应力分散和平衡的力学行为，而掺杂液态金属则改善了界面附着力和电稳定性。电极的初始电阻为0.59 Ω，在X和Y方向上，在100% %应变下，相对电阻变化小于30 %。方向偏差最小，低应变时偏差百分比值为5.78 %，高应变时偏差百分比值为1.38 %。它们在100次加载循环后，在20-60°C的温度范围内保持稳定的性能，电导率约为7200 S/cm。LED电路的演示和手腕弯曲测试表明，动态多向变形下的机电响应几乎相同。这些结果解决了柔性导体中拉伸性和各向同性之间的持续权衡，并为健康监测、人机界面和软机器人的应用提供了可扩展的平台。

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来源期刊

Sensors and Actuators A-physical 工程技术-工程：电子与电气

CiteScore

8.10

自引率

6.50%

发文量

630

审稿时长

49 days

期刊介绍： Sensors and Actuators A: Physical brings together multidisciplinary interests in one journal entirely devoted to disseminating information on all aspects of research and development of solid-state devices for transducing physical signals. Sensors and Actuators A: Physical regularly publishes original papers, letters to the Editors and from time to time invited review articles within the following device areas: • Fundamentals and Physics, such as: classification of effects, physical effects, measurement theory, modelling of sensors, measurement standards, measurement errors, units and constants, time and frequency measurement. Modeling papers should bring new modeling techniques to the field and be supported by experimental results. • Materials and their Processing, such as: piezoelectric materials, polymers, metal oxides, III-V and II-VI semiconductors, thick and thin films, optical glass fibres, amorphous, polycrystalline and monocrystalline silicon. • Optoelectronic sensors, such as: photovoltaic diodes, photoconductors, photodiodes, phototransistors, positron-sensitive photodetectors, optoisolators, photodiode arrays, charge-coupled devices, light-emitting diodes, injection lasers and liquid-crystal displays. • Mechanical sensors, such as: metallic, thin-film and semiconductor strain gauges, diffused silicon pressure sensors, silicon accelerometers, solid-state displacement transducers, piezo junction devices, piezoelectric field-effect transducers (PiFETs), tunnel-diode strain sensors, surface acoustic wave devices, silicon micromechanical switches, solid-state flow meters and electronic flow controllers. Etc...