Resist-Dyed Textile Alkaline Zn Microbatteries with Significantly Suppressed Zn Dendrite Growth

The progress of electronic textiles relies on the development of sustainable power sources without much sacrifice of convenience and comfort of fabrics. Herein, we present a rechargeable textile alkaline Zn microbattery (micro-AZB) fabricated by a process analogous to traditional resist-dyeing techniques. Conductive patterned electrodes are realized first by resist-aided electroless/electrodeposition of Ni/Cu films. The resulting coplanar micro-AZB in a single textile, with an electroplated Zn anode and a Ni0.7Co0.3OOH cathode, achieves high energy density (256.2 Wh kg–1), high power density (10.3 kW kg–1), and stable cycling performances (82.7% for 1500 cycles). The solid-state micro-AZB also shows excellent mechanical reliability (bending, twisting, tailoring, etc.). The improved reversibility and cyclability of textile Zn electrodes over conventional Zn foils are found to be due to the significantly inhibited Zn dendrite growth and suppressed undesirable side reactions. This work provides a new approach for energy-storage textile with high rechargeability, high safety, and aesthetic design versatility

Suppressing the Exacerbated Hydrogen Evolution of Porous Zn Anode with an Artificial Solid-Electrolyte Interphase Layer

Rechargeable Zn batteries are widely studied as aqueous, safe, and environmentally friendly alternatives to Li-ion batteries. The 3D porous Zn anode has been extensively reported for suppressing Zn dendrite growth and accelerating the electrode kinetics. However, we demonstrate herein that the undesirable hydrogen evolution reaction (HER) is also exacerbated for porous Zn electrode. Therefore, a polytetrafluoroethylene (PTFE) coating is further applied on the porous Zn serving as the artificial solid-electrolyte interphase (SEI), which is demonstrated to effectively inhibit the hydrogen evolution and maintain the Zn plating kinetics. By utilizing the synergistic effects of the porous morphology and artificial SEI layer, better performances are obtained over porous Zn or bare Zn foil, including dendrite-free Zn plating/stripping up to 2000 h at 2 mA cm–2 and extended cycling in the Zn||V2O5 cell. This work suggests two complementary strategies for achieving simultaneously dendrite-free and side-reaction-suppressed Zn batteries

Enhanced Photoluminescence of Flexible InGaN/GaN Multiple Quantum Wells on Fabric by Piezo-Phototronic Effect

Fabric-based wearable electronics are showing advantages in emerging applications in wearable devices, Internet of everything, and artificial intelligence. Compared to the one with organic materials, devices based on inorganic semiconductors (e.g., GaN) commonly show advantages of superior characteristics and high stability. Upon the transfer of GaN-based heterogeneous films from their rigid substrates onto flexible/fabric substrates, changes in strain would influence the device performance. Here, we demonstrate the transfer of InGaN/GaN multiple quantum well (MQW) films onto flexible/fabric substrates with an effective lift-off technique. The physical properties of the InGaN/GaN MQWs film are characterized by atomic force microscopy and high-resolution X-ray diffraction, indicating that the transferred film does not suffer from huge damage. Excellent flexible properties are observed in the film transferred on fabric, and the photoluminescence (PL) intensity is enhanced by the piezo-phototronic effect, which shows an increase of about 10% by applying an external strain with increasing the film curvature to 6.25 mm–1. Moreover, energy band diagrams of the GaN/InGaN/GaN heterojunction at different strains are illustrated to clarify the internal modulation mechanism by the piezo-phototronic effect. This work would facilitate the guidance of constructing high-performance devices on fabrics and also push forward the rapid development of flexible and wearable electronics

Resist-Dyed Textile Alkaline Zn Microbatteries with Significantly Suppressed Zn Dendrite Growth

The progress of electronic textiles relies on the development of sustainable power sources without much sacrifice of convenience and comfort of fabrics. Herein, we present a rechargeable textile alkaline Zn microbattery (micro-AZB) fabricated by a process analogous to traditional resist-dyeing techniques. Conductive patterned electrodes are realized first by resist-aided electroless/electrodeposition of Ni/Cu films. The resulting coplanar micro-AZB in a single textile, with an electroplated Zn anode and a Ni0.7Co0.3OOH cathode, achieves high energy density (256.2 Wh kg–1), high power density (10.3 kW kg–1), and stable cycling performances (82.7% for 1500 cycles). The solid-state micro-AZB also shows excellent mechanical reliability (bending, twisting, tailoring, etc.). The improved reversibility and cyclability of textile Zn electrodes over conventional Zn foils are found to be due to the significantly inhibited Zn dendrite growth and suppressed undesirable side reactions. This work provides a new approach for energy-storage textile with high rechargeability, high safety, and aesthetic design versatility

Resist-Dyed Textile Alkaline Zn Microbatteries with Significantly Suppressed Zn Dendrite Growth

The progress of electronic textiles relies on the development of sustainable power sources without much sacrifice of convenience and comfort of fabrics. Herein, we present a rechargeable textile alkaline Zn microbattery (micro-AZB) fabricated by a process analogous to traditional resist-dyeing techniques. Conductive patterned electrodes are realized first by resist-aided electroless/electrodeposition of Ni/Cu films. The resulting coplanar micro-AZB in a single textile, with an electroplated Zn anode and a Ni0.7Co0.3OOH cathode, achieves high energy density (256.2 Wh kg–1), high power density (10.3 kW kg–1), and stable cycling performances (82.7% for 1500 cycles). The solid-state micro-AZB also shows excellent mechanical reliability (bending, twisting, tailoring, etc.). The improved reversibility and cyclability of textile Zn electrodes over conventional Zn foils are found to be due to the significantly inhibited Zn dendrite growth and suppressed undesirable side reactions. This work provides a new approach for energy-storage textile with high rechargeability, high safety, and aesthetic design versatility

On-Chip 3D Zn/NiOOH Helical Electrodes for High-Energy-Density Microbattery

Explosive progress in wireless and functional mobile electronics calls for miniaturized energy-storage units to push forward energy-autonomous and self-sustainable intelligent microsystems. Emerging three-dimensional (3D) microstructured electrodes for energy-storage devices have drawn great attention due to their attractive stereoscopic architectures to increase the areal loading of active materials. Here, we report a strategy for fabricating a 3D helical electrode for a zinc microbattery (Zn MB) by combining a “top-down” lithography technique and a “bottom-up” electrochemical depositing process. Thanks to the available stereoscopic space, the achieved 3D helical electrode shows a high surface area, outstanding electrolyte permeation, and stress adaptive capability. Based on the structural advantages of a 3D helical electrode, high-performance rechargeable Zn MB has been achieved by depositing Zn and NiOOH as anode and cathode materials, respectively. The Zn microbattery demonstrates a specific areal capacity up to 0.325 mAh·cm–2 corresponding to a high energy density of 0.55 mWh·cm–2. It also exhibits remarkable rate capability (0.272 mAh·cm–2 at 100 mA·cm–2) and excellent cycling stability (85% retention after 1000 cycles). The outstanding electrochemical performance indicates that the 3D Zn MB can work as a promising power source for advanced electronic devices. Paired micro-/nanofabrication process for battery electrodes is also of great significance in gearing toward carbon-neutral

Enhanced Photoluminescence of Flexible InGaN/GaN Multiple Quantum Wells on Fabric by Piezo-Phototronic Effect

Fabric-based wearable electronics are showing advantages in emerging applications in wearable devices, Internet of everything, and artificial intelligence. Compared to the one with organic materials, devices based on inorganic semiconductors (e.g., GaN) commonly show advantages of superior characteristics and high stability. Upon the transfer of GaN-based heterogeneous films from their rigid substrates onto flexible/fabric substrates, changes in strain would influence the device performance. Here, we demonstrate the transfer of InGaN/GaN multiple quantum well (MQW) films onto flexible/fabric substrates with an effective lift-off technique. The physical properties of the InGaN/GaN MQWs film are characterized by atomic force microscopy and high-resolution X-ray diffraction, indicating that the transferred film does not suffer from huge damage. Excellent flexible properties are observed in the film transferred on fabric, and the photoluminescence (PL) intensity is enhanced by the piezo-phototronic effect, which shows an increase of about 10% by applying an external strain with increasing the film curvature to 6.25 mm–1. Moreover, energy band diagrams of the GaN/InGaN/GaN heterojunction at different strains are illustrated to clarify the internal modulation mechanism by the piezo-phototronic effect. This work would facilitate the guidance of constructing high-performance devices on fabrics and also push forward the rapid development of flexible and wearable electronics

On-Chip 3D Zn/NiOOH Helical Electrodes for High-Energy-Density Microbattery

Explosive progress in wireless and functional mobile electronics calls for miniaturized energy-storage units to push forward energy-autonomous and self-sustainable intelligent microsystems. Emerging three-dimensional (3D) microstructured electrodes for energy-storage devices have drawn great attention due to their attractive stereoscopic architectures to increase the areal loading of active materials. Here, we report a strategy for fabricating a 3D helical electrode for a zinc microbattery (Zn MB) by combining a “top-down” lithography technique and a “bottom-up” electrochemical depositing process. Thanks to the available stereoscopic space, the achieved 3D helical electrode shows a high surface area, outstanding electrolyte permeation, and stress adaptive capability. Based on the structural advantages of a 3D helical electrode, high-performance rechargeable Zn MB has been achieved by depositing Zn and NiOOH as anode and cathode materials, respectively. The Zn microbattery demonstrates a specific areal capacity up to 0.325 mAh·cm–2 corresponding to a high energy density of 0.55 mWh·cm–2. It also exhibits remarkable rate capability (0.272 mAh·cm–2 at 100 mA·cm–2) and excellent cycling stability (85% retention after 1000 cycles). The outstanding electrochemical performance indicates that the 3D Zn MB can work as a promising power source for advanced electronic devices. Paired micro-/nanofabrication process for battery electrodes is also of great significance in gearing toward carbon-neutral

Triboelectric-Nanogenerator-Based Soft Energy-Harvesting Skin Enabled by Toughly Bonded Elastomer/Hydrogel Hybrids

A major challenge accompanying the booming next-generation soft electronics is providing correspondingly soft and sustainable power sources for driving such devices. Here, we report stretchable triboelectric nanogenerators (TENG) with dual working modes based on the soft hydrogel–elastomer hybrid as energy skins for harvesting biomechanical energies. The tough interfacial bonding between the hydrophilic hydrogel and hydrophobic elastomer, achieved by the interface modification, ensures the stable mechanical and electrical performances of the TENGs. Furthermore, the dehydration of this toughly bonded hydrogel-elastomer hybrid is significantly inhibited (the average dehydration decreases by over 73%). With PDMS as the electrification layer and hydrogel as the electrode, a stretchable, transparent (90% transmittance), and ultrathin (380 μm) single-electrode TENG was fabricated to conformally attach on human skin and deform as the body moves. The two-electrode mode TENG is capable of harvesting energy from arbitrary human motions (press, stretch, bend, and twist) to drive the self-powered electronics. This work provides a feasible technology to design soft power sources, which could potentially solve the energy issues of soft electronics