Mechanics of curvilinear electronics and optoelectronics

Recent advances in materials, mechanics and fabrication strategies have successfully realized high-performance stretchable electronic and optoelectronic systems that are capable of conformally wrapping onto complex, soft, curvilinear surfaces. This capability enables lots of novel applications that were not possible through conventional electronics that is rigid and flat in nature. In this review, we summarize the advances in mechanics of curvilinear electronics and optoelectronics. Three typical forms of curvilinear systems will be discussed, including fixed hemispherical, tunable hemispherical and general curvilinear shapes. These mechanics models and analyses have shown to be very powerful in design and optimization of such systems, and can also provide important insights to the development of other related systems that combine rigid elements with soft substrates.