Piezo-impedance response of carbon nanotube/polydimethylsiloxane nanocomposites

Abstract

Advanced physical sensors based on carbon nanotube/polydimethylsiloxane (CNT/PDMS) nanocomposites have recently attracted much attention for potential applications such as wearable and flexible electronic devices. In this work, a CNT/PDMS sponge was fabricated and their capacitive as well as resistive response was investigated by impedance characterization with an equivalent circuit model. The newly defined gauge factor, which considers simultaneously both the piezocapacitive and piezoresistive effects of CNT/PDMS sponge sensors, showed a significantly improved sensitivity. This work provides important information for a better understanding of CNT/PDMS nanocomposites and their sensing performance.