Multifunctional flexible conductive filament for human motion detection and electrothermal

Highly sensitive wearable e-textiles play an important role in flexible sensors and next-generation personalized electronics with application potential in human physiological monitoring, environmental monitoring, and electronic skin. Here, a scalable and simple strategy for preparing liquid metal (LM)/carbon nanotubes (CNTs) @Ecoflex (LCEF) coaxial conductive filaments were fabricated by wet spinning. The electro-mechanical response behaviors of LCEF sensors were explored to evaluate their sensitivity and stability. The results demonstrated that the filament strain sensors could be used for monitoring both large and subtle human motions. Besides, the LCEF fabrics as a large-area flexible heater exhibited efficient electrothermal response, evidenced by achieving a temperature of over 112.1 degrees C upon applying a voltage of 12 V with 52.6 degrees C obtained on the fabrics within 42 s. This work may shed lights on scalable fabrication of flexible strain sensors and electrothermal devices which pave the way for the development of multifunctional wearable electronic devices.

Automated summary

This article presents a scalable and simple method for fabricating liquid metal (LM)/carbon nanotubes (CNTs) @Ecoflex (LCEF) coaxial conductive filaments. The electro-mechanical response of the filaments was investigated, showing their capability for monitoring both large and subtle human motions. Additionally, the LCEF fabrics demonstrated efficient electrothermal response, functioning as large-area flexible heaters. This work contributes to the scalable fabrication of flexible strain sensors and electrothermal devices, paving the way for the development of multifunctional wearable electronic devices.