Characterization of a SWNT-reinforced conductive polymer and patterning technique for applications of electronic textile

This work reports the characterization of single-wall carbon nanotube (SWNT) reinforced poly (3,4-ethylenedioxythiophene)/poly(4-styrenesulfonate) (PEDOT:PSS) for illustrating the improvement of the functional materials since the conventional PEDOT:PSS is a soft material and irresistible to a scratch with solid surfaces, e.g. metals. Strength improvement by introducing SWNT to PEDOT:PSS solution is confirmed by measurements the hardness of the material. The collateral aim of this work is to optimize the mixture of PEDOT:PSS and SWNT for the application of transparency functional fiber. The higher the SWNT concentration in the mixture, the higher strength of the material where too high concentration of SWNT leads to the low optical transmittance. The optical transmittance experiment provided the light permeability of the film which is changed due to the concentration of SWNT. Besides, the characterizations of sheet resistances, contact resistance and tensile strength of the films are provided. These characteristics of materials influence the practical use of electronic textile made from the fiber coated with the conductive materials. Especially, the increasing rate of resistance during the ribbon deformation was measured in order to acknowledge the feasibility of employing the material dynamically in sufficient cycles. The sheet resistance of PEDOT:PSS/SWNT increases less than 10% when bent with 60° in both compression and tension forms. The electrical conductivity during the friction test confirmed that the material can be employed in the application of electronic textile for physical contacts and electrical contacts between fibers. Micro-patterning method alternatively to inkjet printing of the organic conductive organic material is introduced. Using nanoimprinting lithography technique, the low-temperature compression generates a gradient depth on the desired pattern. The remained PEDOT:PSS/SWNT on the non-imprinted area can be either removed by an adhesive film or remained without electrical conduction to imprinted area.