3D-printed wearable BaTiO3/PDMS piezoelectric nanogenerator for self-powered body movement sensing

Flexible piezoelectric nanogenerators (PENGs) used in body movement real-time monitoring are of great interest for their wide application potential such as in the field of smart healthcare. In this work, a self-powered BaTiO₃/Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) PENG for body movement sensing was successfully fabricated by extrusion 3D printing. Matrix system composed of different ratios of PDMS was selected based on the rheological property of materials. Experimental investigations were conducted to examine the impact of printing pressure and speed on the linewidth. Subsequently, the extrusion parameters for nanogenerators were determined based on the printed linewidth. The composite showed good ferroelectric property. After polarization, the nanogenerators exhibited an improvement in output performance of up to 55.2%. Additionally, the device demonstrated a good linear relationship between voltage and tapped force test by an electromechanical vibrator. Successful detection of body or muscle movement signals was achieved when the nanogenerator was mounted on the human finger, throat, or foot using a wearable sock, highlighting its potential for applications in self-powered wearable devices for smart healthcare.