Graphene/glycerin solution-based multifunctional stretchable strain sensor with ultra-high stretchability, stability, and sensitivity

Abstract

Highly stretchable, flexible, and sensitive strain sensors have promising applications in motion detection-especially multifunctional strain sensors that can detect stretching, bending, compression and twisting. Herein, this study presents a graphene and glycerol solution-based multifunctional sensor with ultra-high stretchability and sensitivity. Owing to the self-lubrication and fluidity of the graphene-glycerol solution, the strain sensors display super stretchability up to 1000%, a maximum gauge factor up to 45.13, and excellent durability for over 10,000 cycles. In addition, the sensor can also rapidly respond to small strains (1%, 5%, 10%) and different stretching rates (12.5%/s, 25%/s, 50%/s, and 100%/s). More impressively, the sensors can measure up to 50 kPa pressure and 180° twisting without any damage. Furthermore, the strain sensors demonstrate their applicability in scenarios involving motion detection, such as that for finger bending, wrist rotating, touching, and drinking water.