Inkjet-printed micro-supercapacitors offer viable power source to e-textiles

The development allows for the electrodes to be printed onto the fabric of garments to provide power to wearable technologies that are embedded in the clothing while allowing them to remain wearable and washable.

Supercapacitors store energy electrochemically and have advantages over ordinary batteries, such as being faster to charge and discharge, having longer lifespans and being more cost-effective.

The study – published in Advanced Functional Materials  – shows how inkjet printing ultra-thin layers of two-dimensional (2D) materials including graphene, molybdenum disulfide (MoS2) and hexagonal boron nitride (h-BN) is the most accurate way to form a layered material (a heterostructure), to create a micro-supercapacitor.

In a statement, study supervisor Professor Nazmul Karim, of the Nottingham School of Art & Design at NTU, said: “E-textiles are widely considered to be a promising healthcare solution which can help allow for the unobtrusive monitoring of human health to support diagnoses at the point of care.