Electrical Resistance of Carbon Nanotube Yarns Under Compressive Transverse Pressure

This letter reports on the impact of compressive pressure on the electrical properties of carbon nanotube (CNT) yarns fabricated by dry Web-spinning and heat-treatment processes. Under increasing applied compressive pressure in the radial direction of the yarn, the electrical resistance of CNT yarns gradually decreased by 2.8% at a threshold applied pressure of 60 kPa where the resistance change is saturated. The decrease of CNT resistance with increasing pressure is attributed to the increase in the volume fraction of CNT, resulting in the increase of the effective junctions between adjacent CNTs, and the reduction of the tunneling distance between single CNTs. CNT yarns embedded in elastomers show high potential as an advanced functional element for a wide range of mechanical sensing applications including flexible pressure and tactile sensing.

[1]  W. D. de Heer,et al.  Carbon Nanotubes--the Route Toward Applications , 2002, Science.

[2]  R. Baughman,et al.  Manufacturing polymer/carbon nanotube composite using a novel direct process , 2011, Nanotechnology.

[3]  C. Huynh,et al.  Improving the tensile strength of carbon nanotube spun yarns using a modified spinning process , 2009 .

[4]  Dzung Viet Dao,et al.  Integrated CNTs thin film for MEMS mechanical sensors , 2010, Microelectron. J..

[5]  Dzung Viet Dao,et al.  A micromirror with CNTs hinge fabricated by the integration of CNTs film into a MEMS actuator , 2013 .

[6]  Nam-Trung Nguyen,et al.  Environment-friendly carbon nanotube based flexible electronics for noninvasive and wearable healthcare , 2016 .

[7]  K. Hata,et al.  Integration of SWNT film into MEMS for a micro-thermoelectric device , 2010 .

[8]  Ning Hu,et al.  Piezoresistive Strain Sensors Made from Carbon Nanotubes Based Polymer Nanocomposites , 2011, Sensors.

[9]  Tao Liu,et al.  A Review: Carbon Nanotube-Based Piezoresistive Strain Sensors , 2012, J. Sensors.

[10]  Benjamin C. K. Tee,et al.  Skin-like pressure and strain sensors based on transparent elastic films of carbon nanotubes. , 2011, Nature nanotechnology.

[11]  Menghe Miao,et al.  Electrical conductivity of pure carbon nanotube yarns , 2011 .

[12]  U. Böttger,et al.  Mechanical force sensors using organic thin-film transistors , 2005 .

[13]  K. Belay,et al.  Strain dependence of electrical resistance in carbon nanotube yarns , 2014 .

[14]  Yong Zhu,et al.  Electrically Stable Carbon Nanotube Yarn Under Tensile Strain , 2017, IEEE Electron Device Letters.

[15]  V. Shanov,et al.  Nanotube Superfiber Materials : Changing Engineering Design , 2013 .

[16]  Ning Pan,et al.  Development of a Constitutive Theory for Short Fiber Yarns: Mechanics of Staple Yarn Without Slippage Effect , 1992 .

[17]  Elgar Fleisch,et al.  Flexible-foam-based capacitive sensor arrays for object detection at low cost , 2008 .

[18]  Ning Pan,et al.  A Modified Analysis of the Microstructural Characteristics of General Fiber Assemblies , 1993 .

[19]  L. Gorbatikh,et al.  Compression behaviour of a fibre bundle with grafted carbon nanotubes , 2011 .

[20]  C. Hierold,et al.  Nano-electromechanical displacement sensing based on single-walled carbon nanotubes. , 2006, Nano letters.

[21]  S. Bauer,et al.  Flexible active-matrix cells with selectively poled bifunctional polymer-ceramic nanocomposite for pressure and temperature sensing skin , 2009 .

[22]  P. Ajayan,et al.  Applications of Carbon Nanotubes , 2001 .