Soft Materials for Wearable/Flexible Electrochemical Energy Conversion, Storage, and Biosensor Devices

Abstract

Next-generation wearable technology needs portable flexible energy storage, conversion, and biosensor devices that can be worn on soft and curved surfaces. The conformal integration of these devices requires the use of soft, flexible, light materials, and substrates with similar mechanical properties as well as high performances. In this review, we have collected and discussed the remarkable research contributions of recent years, focusing the attention on the development and arrangement of soft and flexible materials (electrodes, electrolytes, substrates) that allowed traditional power sources and sensors to become viable and compatible with wearable electronics, preserving or improving their conventional performances.

Keywords

• soft materials
• wearable devices
• flexible polymer electrolyte fuel cells
• enzymatic biofuel cells
• embedded mediators
• microbial fuel cells