Dual-Mode Flexible Sensor Based on PVDF/MXene Nanosheet/Reduced Graphene Oxide Composites for Electronic Skin

MXene materials have the metallic conductivity of transition metal carbides. Among them, Ti3C2TX with an accordion structure has great application prospects in the field of wearable devices. However, flexible wearable electronic devices face the problem of single function in practical application. Therefore, it is particularly important to study a flexible sensor with multiple functions for electronic skin. In this work, the near-field electrohydrodynamic printing (NFEP) method was proposed to prepare the composite thin film with a micro/nanofiber structure on the flexible substrate using a solution of poly(vinylidene fluoride)/MXene nanosheet/reduced graphene oxide (PMR) nanocomposites as the printing solution. A dual-mode flexible sensor for electronic skin based on the PMR nanocomposite thin film was fabricated. The flexible sensor had the detection capability of the piezoresistive mode and the piezoelectric mode. In the piezoresistive mode, the sensitivity was 29.27 kPa−1 and the response/recovery time was 36/55 ms. In the piezoelectric mode, the sensitivity was 8.84 kPa−1 and the response time was 18.2 ms. Under the synergy of the dual modes, functions that cannot be achieved by a single mode sensor can be accomplished. In the process of detecting the pressure or deformation of the object, more information is obtained, which broadens the application range of the flexible sensor. The experimental results show that the dual-mode flexible sensor has great potential in human motion monitoring and wearable electronic device applications.