Harvesting body heat using thermoelectricity provides a promising path to realizing self-powered,wearable electronics that can achieve continuous,long-term,uninterrupted health monitoring.This paper reports a flexible...Harvesting body heat using thermoelectricity provides a promising path to realizing self-powered,wearable electronics that can achieve continuous,long-term,uninterrupted health monitoring.This paper reports a flexible thermoelectric generator(TEG)that provides efficient conversion of body heat to electrical energy.The device relies on a low thermal conductivity aerogel–silicone composite that secures and thermally isolates the individual semiconductor elements that are connected in series using stretchable eutectic gallium-indium(EGaIn)liquid metal interconnects.The composite consists of aerogel particulates mixed into polydimethylsiloxane(PDMS)providing as much as 50%reduction in the thermal conductivity of the silicone elastomer.Worn on the wrist,the flexible TEGs present output power density figures approaching 35μWcm^(−2)at an air velocity of 1.2 ms^(−1),equivalent to walking speed.The results suggest that these flexible TEGs can serve as the main energy source for low-power wearable electronics.展开更多
基金supported by the Advanced Self-Powered Systems of Integrated Sensors and Technologies(ASSIST)a Nano-Systems Engineering Research Center funded by National Science Foundation(EEC1160483).
文摘Harvesting body heat using thermoelectricity provides a promising path to realizing self-powered,wearable electronics that can achieve continuous,long-term,uninterrupted health monitoring.This paper reports a flexible thermoelectric generator(TEG)that provides efficient conversion of body heat to electrical energy.The device relies on a low thermal conductivity aerogel–silicone composite that secures and thermally isolates the individual semiconductor elements that are connected in series using stretchable eutectic gallium-indium(EGaIn)liquid metal interconnects.The composite consists of aerogel particulates mixed into polydimethylsiloxane(PDMS)providing as much as 50%reduction in the thermal conductivity of the silicone elastomer.Worn on the wrist,the flexible TEGs present output power density figures approaching 35μWcm^(−2)at an air velocity of 1.2 ms^(−1),equivalent to walking speed.The results suggest that these flexible TEGs can serve as the main energy source for low-power wearable electronics.
