Superhydrophobic and multi-responsive fabric composite with excellent electro-photo-thermal effect and electromagnetic interference shielding performance

Wearable electronics and smart garments have attracted increasing attention due to their potential application in health care monitoring, artificial intelligence, soft robotics, etc. However, designing robust and flexible wearable electronics that can shield electromagnetic waves and work in all-weather environment or even harsh conditions remains a challenge. Herein, superhydrophobic and multi-responsive fabric composites with outstanding electro-photo-thermal effect and excellent electromagnetic interference shielding (EMI) performance are fabricated by decoration of conductive Ag nanoparticles onto the oxygen plasma treated polypropylene (PP) fabric, followed by multiple spray-coating with a mixture of Fe3O4 nanoparticles/polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS). The obtained fabric composites exhibit high conductivity (up to 108.8 S/cm) and the EMI shielding effectiveness (SE) can reach as high as similar to 56.1 dB in the X band, in which of the incident electromagnetic waves can account for 30%. Moreover, the PDMS coating not only improves the interface adhesion between the nanoparticles and fibers, but also endows the fabric composites with superhydrophobicity, leading to an excellent self-cleaning performance. Surprisingly, the fabric composites also exhibit multiple responsive properties to electron and light, known as electro-photo-thermal effect, which can be maintained during mechanical deformations and cold environment. This work opens a new avenue for next-generation of wearable electronics with multi-functionality.