Scientists have long been trying to create flexible touch panels that could be used as artificial leather. But a group of scientists from the Korean Institute of advanced technology, in South Korea went the furthest, creating a spray that when applied to any surface will give her the opportunity to distinguish between pressure and tension.
At the core of the spray lie graphene nanotubes. They are stacked in several layers on top of each other. This structure is Multiwall Carbon Nanotubes (MWCNT). Thanks to the layered material can react to pressure, and the conductivity of graphene allows it to register touch.
It works this way: during the exposure is the stretching of the network of nanotubes, causing microcracks, which cause changes in the spatial arrangement of atoms. This is the signal that the material was produced by the impact. According to one of the authors, Professor Stephen Park,
“Our electronic skin can become a mass product due to the low cost of production. Furthermore, it is possible to cover any objects, including artificial limbs. We think that this technology can be a key towards creating a practical and inexpensive synthetic leather.”
In the future, the authors want to develop a similar substance, which would have recorded only pressure that can be useful in creating a variety of sensors and gauges. For more details see the application of “delicate spray” you in the video, available below.
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Developed by spray application of tactile sensors on any surface
Vladimir Kuznetsov