New ultra-thin flexible films have been developed by researchers at a Mohali institute that can effectively convert tiny temperature fluctuations into electrical signals to support advanced flexible electronic systems having applications in healthcare, environmental monitoring and energy-efficient devices
Scientists from Institute of Nano Science and Technology (INST) engineered ultra-thin films made from a flexible polymer, called polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF), which is widely used in electronic and sensing applications, according to information shared by the Ministry of Science and Technology on Monday.
They demonstrated that embedding a minute amount of nano-gold into a common ferroelectric polymer, which are flexible, lightweight and durable plastics that possess permanent electrical characteristics, dramatically boosts its ability to generate electricity from changes in temperature.
There is strong demand for lightweight, flexible and low-power materials that can convert tiny thermal fluctuations into usable electrical signals for next-generation smart devices and autonomous sensors.
Earlier, PVDF composite systems have shown enhanced thermal-to-electrical conversion, but many such approaches rely on micron-thick devices or less controlled hybrid interfaces, which limits their suitability for thin, wearable and low-power electronics, the Ministry said.
There is a growing interest amongst the scientific community in combining polymers to create high-speed, low-power, self-powered devices that can respond to both thermal and optical stimuli.
The team led by Prof Dipankar Mandal worked on known ferroelectric and film-forming properties of PVDF, and designed a low-dose in-situ nano-gold strategy to understand how nano-scale gold–polymer interactions and associated processes can be used to tailor the conversion of temperature change into electrical energy in very thin films.
The researchers used films thinner than 100 nanometres, which would be 500-1000 times thinner than a standard strand of human hair, and employed a small temperature fluctuation range of 294 to 301 Kelvin.
The research addresses an important need for ambient temperature thermal sensing and wearable energy harvesting technologies, the Ministry said.
