UCLA

Wearable bioelectronics enable the changes in the current reactive and disease-centric healthcare system to a personalized model, focused on disease prevention and health promotion. Harnessing the body’s biomechanical forces is a unique way to develop wearable bioelectronics for personalized healthcare. The research advancements in triboelectric nanogenerators and the���ir ability to produce electrical signals in the presence of deformation, compression, and bending, among other movements have made it very favorable for miniaturized biomechanical motion sensors. In this work, we developed a soft triboelectric nanogenerator (S-TENG) formed with a liquid metal electrode treated with Nickel (Ni-EGaIn) encapsulated between two layers of Polycaprolactone (PCL) electrospun textiles. The Ni-EGaIn liquid demonstrates more tunable characteristics with a viscosity of 2,786 Pa�s at a shear rate of 1 s-1. The PCL cloth effectively wicks moisture keeping the sensor dry and cool with a drying rate of 5.07 % min-1 compared to conventional fabrics such as polyester with a drying rate of 3.93 % min-1. Operating as a single-electrode, the 4x4 cm2 patch demonstrated its ability to produce an open-circuit voltage of 12 V with a short-circuit current of 0.12 mA, ultimately outputting a power density of 7.975 W m-2. The S-TENG exhibited stable performance over many cycles and demonstrated its capability in producing electrical output under varying degrees of deformation in the form of stretching and bending. It has the potential to be integrated into all aspects of wearables such as patches, bracelets, and even clothing. The capabilities of the S-TENG given its power output efficiency, economical practicality, as well as user-friendly structure establishes itself as a promising approach to sustainable, wearable bioelectronic devices.