Carbon-based thin-film actuator with 1D to 2D transitional structure applied in smart clothing

Abstract

Flexible actuating materials play an important role in soft robots and wearable devices. Searching for the way to improve strength, sensitivity and controllability is one of the directions of efforts of actuators to meet the growing demands in smart electronics and smart clothing. Herein, a kind of thin-film actuator with transitional carbon structure is developed by ordered filtration of carbon nanotubes and graphene oxide. The properties can be adjusted by changing the amount of either component. The fastest responding time in this work is 0.4 s, and the highest contractile stress is up to 15.1 MPa. Inspired by the origami technique, it can perform rotating behavior after simple stress treatment. A kind of body temperature and humidity regulating cloth functionalized by such film actuators is also demonstrated based on the moisture-driven property.