Capacitive Pressure Sensors Based on Square‐Conical Arrays Fabricated by a Fabric‐Mould Strategy for Ultralow and Highly Sensitive Pressure Detection

Abstract

AbstractFlexible pressure sensors are playing an emerging role in artificial intelligence and electronic skin. However, developing a high‐performance, flexible pressure sensor through a reusable and straightforward manufacturing approach still remains a challenge. In this study, a highly sensitive, flexible capacitive pressure sensor based on a fabric‐mould strategy is introduced. Custom square‐conical arrays with Au electrodes can feasibly be fabricated at scale by peeling them off the fabric mould. The fabricated pressure sensor exhibits a high sensitivity of 5.829 kPa−1 (0–0.444 kPa) and a rapid response/recovery time of 160/70 ms. Notably, the sensor has an ultralow detection limit of 0.24 Pa, showing great potential for extremely sensitive pressure detection applications, such as water leakage monitoring. Finite element analysis, grounded on 3D‐scanning reconstruction, reveals that the enhanced sensing performance can be attributed to the contact surface of the square‐conical arrays. Moreover, the pressure sensors can accurately identify human physiological information, as well as the spatial distribution and shape of objects, further highlighting the promise for wearable electronic devices. This work not only offers a new approach for large‐scale fabrication of micro‐structures at low cost but also provides a new insight into the optimization of structures for sensitive pressure sensors.