A Sewing-enabled Stitch-and-Transfer Method for Robust, Ultra-stretchable, Conductive Interconnects

Fabricating highly stretchable, robust electrical interconnects at low-cost remains an unmet challenge in stretchable electronics. Previously reported, stretchable interconnects require complicated fabrication processes with resulting devices exhibiting limited stretchability, poor reliability, and large gauge factors.

Purdue University researchers have developed a novel, sew and transfer method for rapid fabrication of low-cost, highly stretchable interconnects. Using a commercial sewing machine and double-thread stitch, with one of the threads being water-soluble polyvinyl alcohol (PVA), thin zigzag pattern metallic wires are sewn into a polymeric film and are subsequently transferred onto a stretchable elastomeric substrate by dissolving PVA in warm water. The resulting structures exhibit extreme stretchability and robustness.

Advantages:

-Low-cost method to fabricate stretchable electronics

-Extreme stretchability and robustness

-No change in resistance with strain

Potential Applications:

-Wearable electronics

-Skin mounted electronics

-Implantable medical systems

TRL: 5

Intellectual Property:

Keywords: stretchable electronics, robust electrical interconnects, low-cost fabrication, sew and transfer method, highly stretchable interconnects, commercial sewing machine, zigzag pattern metallic wires, elastomeric substrate, wearable electronics, skin mounted electronics, implantable medical systems, Electrical Engineering, Electronics, Implants, Medical Devices, Wearable Electronics