Monolayer graphene has been successfully transferred to textile fibers

Researchers have successfully transferred single-layer graphene to fibers commonly found in the textile industry. This transparent head-shaped material is expected to be applied to embedded wearable electronics such as mobile phones and fitness trackers in the future. Or MP3 player. The team said that monolayer graphene material is very suitable for this application, because it is not only flexible, but also has a certain degree of mechanical strength and conductivity. After making single-layer graphene by chemical vapor deposition (CVD) on copper foil, researchers began to transfer it to polypropylene fiber.

This complex process involves the transfer of graphene from the copper foil to the polypropylene fibers commonly found in the textile industry.

The method includes spin-coating a graphene/copper substrate with thin polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA) before etching. After the graphene is transferred to the fiber, the PMMA film is removed by washing with hot acetone, and finally the continuous graphene layer is left behind. On the fiber.

The University of Exeter, the Belgian Centre for Textile Research (CenTexBel), the Institute of Systems Engineering and Computers, the Lisbon Institute for Microsystems and Nanotechnology (INESC-MN), the University of Lisbon, and Portugal's Aveiro have collaborated and achieved this result. .

Dr. Isabel De Schrijver said: "This disruptive technology has opened up a wide range of applications for wearable electronic devices. We expect the electronic industry to adopt in the future."

The results of this study have been published in Scientific Reports.