State Key Laboratory of Electronic Thin Films and Integrated Devices, School of Optoelectronic Science and Engineering, University of Electronic Science and Technology of China, 610054, Chengdu, China.
Department of Materials Science and Engineering, The Pennsylvania State University, State College, PA, 16802, USA.
Nat Commun. 2022 Aug 18;13(1):4867. doi: 10.1038/s41467-022-32518-3.
Polymer-ceramic piezoelectric composites, combining high piezoelectricity and mechanical flexibility, have attracted increasing interest in both academia and industry. However, their piezoelectric activity is largely limited by intrinsically low crystallinity and weak spontaneous polarization. Here, we propose a TiCT MXene anchoring method to manipulate the intermolecular interactions within the all-trans conformation of a polymer matrix. Employing phase-field simulation and molecular dynamics calculations, we show that OH surface terminations on the TiCT nanosheets offer hydrogen bonding with the fluoropolymer matrix, leading to dipole alignment and enhanced net spontaneous polarization of the polymer-ceramic composites. We then translated this interfacial bonding strategy into electrospinning to boost the piezoelectric response of samarium doped Pb (MgNb)O-PbTiO/polyvinylidene fluoride composite nanofibers by 160% via TiCT nanosheets inclusion. With excellent piezoelectric and mechanical attributes, the as-electrospun piezoelectric nanofibers can be easily integrated into the conventional shoe insoles to form a foot sensor network for all-around gait patterns monitoring, walking habits identification and Metatarsalgi prognosis. This work utilizes the interfacial coupling mechanism of intermolecular anchoring as a strategy to develop high-performance piezoelectric composites for wearable electronics.
聚合物-陶瓷压电复合材料兼具高压电性和机械柔韧性，在学术界和工业界引起了越来越多的关注。然而，其压电活性在很大程度上受到固有低结晶度和弱自发极化的限制。在这里，我们提出了一种 TiCT MXene 锚定方法来操纵聚合物基体全反式构象内的分子间相互作用。我们采用相场模拟和分子动力学计算表明，TiCT 纳米片上的 OH 表面末端与氟聚合物基体形成氢键，导致偶极子取向和增强聚合物-陶瓷复合材料的净自发极化。然后，我们将这种界面键合策略转化为静电纺丝，通过包含 TiCT 纳米片将钐掺杂 Pb（MgNb）O-PbTiO/聚偏二氟乙烯复合纳米纤维的压电响应提高了 160%。所纺制的压电纳米纤维具有优异的压电和机械性能，可以很容易地集成到传统的鞋垫中，形成一个用于全方位步态模式监测、行走习惯识别和跖骨痛预后的足部传感器网络。这项工作利用分子间锚固的界面耦合机制作为一种策略，为可穿戴电子设备开发高性能压电复合材料。
