Skin-inspired electronics enabled by supramolecular polymeric materials

Abstract

Next-generation electronics that intimately interact with the human body would play crucial roles in future health monitors and early disease diagnosis. Skininspired electronics have been rapidly growing in the past decade to emulate the remarkable sensory and responsive nature of the human skin tissue. Toward the goal of combining excellent electrical performance and exceptional mechanical compliance, one key step is to identify basic building blocks that are mechanically adaptive and electronically active. Among the available material candidates, supramolecular polymeric materials (SPMs) and their composites are emerging as promising candidates because of their intrinsic skinlike mechanical properties such as stretchability, flexibility, self-healing, and toughness, as well as their tunable electrical properties achieved through chemical synthesis or physical blending. In this mini review article, we critically summarize recent progress in skin-inspired electronics, enabled by SPMs with a focus on the design of electronically active SPMs and their applications as principle components of electronic skins. Finally, we conclude by highlighting on challenges and opportunities of SPMs toward a new-generation skin-inspired electronics.