Breathing-effect assisted transferring large-area PEDOT:PSS to PDMS substrate with robust adhesion for stable flexible pressure sensor

Abstract Transferring conductive polymer onto PDMS substrate to form conductive polymer/PDMS bimorphs is a widely applied strategy to fabricate flexible pressure sensors. However, the weak interface adhesion will cause the conductive polymer film to slip even peel off under external stimulation, which significantly deteriorates the stability of the device. Unfortunately, it remains a challenge to integrate large-area conductive polymer films onto PDMS with robust interface adhesion. To solve this problem, an original breathing-effect assisted transfer (BEAT) strategy is developed. By optimizing surface topography, the pressure sensors with the PEDOT:PSS/PDMS bimorph exhibit a fast response time of 200 μs, high sensitivity of 642.5 kPa−1 and show great repeatability and stability even after being cyclic operated over 10,000 times. Moreover, transferring other conductive polymers or metal nanowires to PDMS with robust adhesion is also feasible, thus improving the stability and extending the scope of the applications of flexible electronics.