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Aiming at harvesting ambient mechanical energy for self-powered systems, triboelectric nanogenerators (TENGs) have been recently developed as a highly efficient, cost-effective and robust approach to generate electricity from mechanical movements and vibrations on the basis of the coupling between triboelectrification and electrostatic induction. However, all of the previously demonstrated TENGs are based on vertical separation of triboelectric-charged planes, which requires sophisticated device structures to ensure enough resilience for the charge separation, otherwise there is no output current. In this paper, we demonstrated a newly designed TENG based on an in-plane charge separation process using the relative sliding between two contacting surfaces. Using Polyamide 6,6 (Nylon) and polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) films with surface etched nanowires, the two polymers at the opposite ends of the triboelectric series, the newly invented TENG produces an open-circuit voltage up to ~1300 V and a short-circuit current density of 4.1 mA/m(2) with a peak power density of 5.3 W/m(2), which can be used as a direct power source for instantaneously driving hundreds of serially connected light-emitting diodes (LEDs). The working principle and the relationships between electrical outputs and the sliding motion are fully elaborated and systematically studied, providing a new mode of TENGs with diverse applications. Compared to the existing vertical-touching based TENGs, this planar-sliding TENG has a high efficiency, easy fabrication, and suitability for many types of mechanical triggering. Furthermore, with the relationship between the electrical output and the sliding motion being calibrated, the sliding-based TENG could potentially be used as a self-powered displacement/speed/acceleration sensor.

The triboelectric effect is known for many centuries and it is the cause of many charging phenomena. However, it has not been utilized for energy harvesting until very recently. (1-5) Here we developed a new principle of triboelectric generator (TEG) based on a fully contacted, sliding electrification process, which lays a fundamentally new mechanism for designing universal, high-performance TEGs to harvest diverse forms of mechanical energy in our daily life. Relative displacement between two sliding surfaces of opposite triboelectric polarities generates uncompensated surface triboelectric charges; the corresponding polarization created a voltage drop that results in a flow of induced electrons between electrodes. Grating of linear rows on the sliding surfaces enables substantial enhancements of total charges, output current, and current frequency. The TEG was demonstrated to be an efficient power source for simultaneously driving a number of small electronics. The principle established in this work can be applied to TEGs of different configurations that accommodate the needs of harvesting energy and/or sensing from diverse mechanical motions, such as contacted sliding, lateral translation, and rotation/rolling.

We demonstrate a new flexible multilayered triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG) with extremely low cost, simple structure, small size (3.8 cm×3.8 cm×0.95 cm) and lightweight (7 g) by innovatively integrating five layers of units on a single flexible substrate. Owing to the unique structure and nanopore-based surface modification on the metal surface, the instantaneous short-circuit current (Isc) and the open-circuit voltage (Voc) could reach 0.66 mA and 215 V with an instantaneous maximum power density of 9.8 mW/cm2 and 10.24 mW/cm3. This is the first 3D integrated TENG for enhancing the output power. Triggered by press from normal walking, the TENG attached onto a shoe pad was able to instantaneously drive multiple commercial LED bulbs. With the flexible structure, the TENG can be further integrated into clothes or even attached onto human body without introducing sensible obstruction and discomfort to human motions. The novel design of TENG demonstrated here can be applied to potentially achieve self-powered portable electronics.

We have developed a free-standing-mode based triboelectric nanogenerator (F-TENG) that consists of indium tin oxide (ITO) foils and a polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) thin film. By utilizing the wind-induced resonance vibration of a PTFE film between two ITO electrodes, the F-TENG delivers an open-circuit voltage up to 37 V and a short-circuit current of 6.2 μA, which can be used as a sustainable power source to simultaneously and continuously light up tens of light emitting diodes (LEDs) and charge capacitors. Moreover, uniform division of the electrode into several parallel units efficiently suppresses the inner counteracting effect of undulating film and leads to an enhancement of output current by 95%. The F-TENG holds prominent durability and an excellent linear relationship between output current and flow rate, revealing its feasibility as a self-powered sensor for detecting wind speed. This work demonstrates potential applications of the triboelectric generator in gas flow harvesters, self-powered air navigation, self-powered gas sensors and wind vector sensors.

Magnetic sensors are usually based on the Hall effect or a magnetoresistive sensing mechanism. Here we demonstrate that a nanogenerator can serve as a sensor for detecting the variation of the time-dependent magnetic field. The output voltage of the sensor was found to exponentially increase with increasing magnetic field. The detection sensitivities for the change and the changing rate of magnetic field are about 0.0363 ± 0.0004 ln(mV)/G and 0.0497 ± 0.0006 ln(mV)/(G/s), respectively. The response time and reset time of the sensor are about 0.13 and 0.34 s, respectively. The fabricated sensor has a detection resolution of about 3 G and can work under low frequencies (

We demonstrate a thermoelectric nanogenerator (NG) made from a single Sb-doped ZnO micro/nanobelt that generates an output power of about 1.94 nW under a temperature difference of 30 K between the two electrodes. A single Sb-doped ZnO microbelt was bonded at its ends on a glass substrate as a NG, which can give an output voltage of 10 mV and an output current of 194 nA. The single Sb-doped ZnO microbelt shows a Seebeck coefficient of about -350 μV/K and a high power factor of about 3.2 × 10(-4) W/mK(2). The fabricated NG demonstrated its potential to work as a self-powered temperature sensor with a reset time of about 9 s.

Recent experiments with a carbon nanotube (CNT) system confirmed that the innertube can oscillate back-and-forth even under a room-temperature excitation. This demonstration of relative motion suggests that it is now feasible to build a CNT-based molecular memory cell (MC), and the key to bring the concept to reality is the precision control of the moving tube for sustained and reliable read/write (RW) operations. Here, we show that by using a 2-section outertube design, we are able to suitably recalibrate the system energetics and obtain the designed performance characteristics of a MC. Further, the resulting energy modification enables the MC to operate as a non-volatile memory element at room temperatures. Our paper explores a fundamental understanding of a MC and its response at the molecular level to roadmap a novel approach in memory technologies that can be harnessed to overcome the miniaturization limit and memory volatility in memory technologies.

In this paper, we report a simple and practical composite structure for a nanogenerator (NG). The composite design using two kinds of piezoelectric materials, zinc oxide and poly(vinylidene fluoride), requires no more system size and complexity than for a single material, but improves the power density and sensitivity of the NG significantly. With no need of an external power source or batteries, the composite NG can efficiently convert the vortex motion in the atmosphere into electricity. Based on the Karman vortex street principle, ambient wind-speed measurements with the NG are demonstrated. Due to the simple structure, high sensitivity and good environment-friendly properties, the NG as an active sensor should play an important role in wireless environmental monitoring networks.

Triboelectric motion sensors, based on the generation of a voltage across two dissimilar materials sliding across each other as a result of the triboelectric effect, have generated interest due to the relative simplicity of the typical grated device structures and materials required. However, these sensors are often limited by poor spatial and/or temporal resolution of motion due to limitations in achieving the required device feature sizes through conventional lithography or printing techniques. Furthermore, the reliance on metallic components that are relatively straightforward to pattern into fine features limits the possibility to develop transparent sensors. Polymers would allow for transparent devices, but these materials are significantly more difficult to pattern into fine features when compared to metals. Here, we use an aerosol-jet printing (AJP) technique to develop triboelectric sensors using a wide variety of materials, including polymers, which can be directly printed into finely featured grated structures for enhanced sensitivity to displacement and speed of motion. We present a detailed investigation highlighting the role of material selection and feature size in determining the overall resolution of the resulting motion sensor. A 3-channel rotary sensor is also presented, demonstrating the versatility of the AJP technique in developing more complex triboelectric motion sensors.

Highlights • Aerosol-jet printing is used to fabricate microfluidic devices with customised geometries, including steps and slopes. • A rapid prototyping method for producing bespoke molds for microfluidic devices with precise channel functionalization. • The functionalization capability is demonstrated by rendering a section of a microfluidic channel hydrophilic using PVA., Microfluidics has emerged as a powerful analytical tool for biology and biomedical research, with uses ranging from single-cell phenotyping to drug discovery and medical diagnostics, and only small sample volumes required for testing. The ability to rapidly prototype new designs is hugely beneficial in a research environment, but the high cost, slow turnaround, and wasteful nature of commonly used fabrication techniques, particularly for complex multi-layer geometries, severely impede the development process. In addition, microfluidic channels in most devices currently play a passive role and are typically used to direct flows. The ability to “functionalize” the channels with different materials in precise spatial locations would be a major advantage for a range of applications. This would involve incorporating functional materials directly within the channels that can partake in, guide or facilitate reactions in precisely controlled microenvironments. Here we demonstrate the use of Aerosol Jet Printing (AJP) to rapidly produce bespoke molds for microfluidic devices with a range of different geometries and precise “in-channel” functionalization. We show that such an advanced microscale additive manufacturing method can be used to rapidly design cost-efficient and customized microfluidic devices, with the ability to add functional coatings at specific locations within the microfluidic channels. We demonstrate the functionalization capabilities of our technique by specifically coating a section of a microfluidic channel with polyvinyl alcohol to render it hydrophilic. This versatile microfluidic device prototyping technique will be a powerful aid for biological and bio-medical research in both academic and industrial contexts.

Thermoelectric generators (TEGs) operate in the presence of a temperature gradient, where the constituent thermoelectric (TE) material converts heat into electricity via the Seebeck effect. However, TE materials are characterised by a thermoelectric figure of merit (ZT) and/or power factor (PF), which often has a strong dependence on temperature. Thus, a single TE material spanning a given temperature range is unlikely to have an optimal ZT or PF across the entire range, leading to inefficient TEG performance. Here, we demonstrate compositionally graded organic-inorganic nanocomposites, where the composition of the TE nanocomposite is systematically tuned along the length of the TEG, in order to optimise the PF along the applied temperature gradient. The nanocomposite composition can be dynamically tuned by an aerosol-jet printing method with controlled in-situ mixing capability, thus enabling the realisation of such compositionally graded thermoelectric composites (CG-TECs). We show how CG-TECs can be realised by varying the loading weight percentage of Bi2Te3 nanoparticles or Sb2Te3 nanoflakes within an organic conducting matrix using bespoke solution-processable inks. The enhanced energy harvesting capability of these CG-TECs from low-grade waste heat (