3D printing of self-healing longevous multi-sensory e-skin

Abstract Electrically conductive hydrogels can simulate the sensory capabilities of natural skin, such that they are well-suited for electronic skin. Unfortunately, currently available electronic skin cannot detect multiple stimuli in a selective manner. Inspired by the deep eutectic solvent chemist...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Antonia Georgopoulou, Sudong Lee, Benhui Dai, Francesca Bono, Josie Hughes, Esther Amstad
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Nature Portfolio 2025-06-01
Series:Communications Materials
Online Access:https://doi.org/10.1038/s43246-025-00839-7
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1850100566667034624
author Antonia Georgopoulou
Sudong Lee
Benhui Dai
Francesca Bono
Josie Hughes
Esther Amstad
author_facet Antonia Georgopoulou
Sudong Lee
Benhui Dai
Francesca Bono
Josie Hughes
Esther Amstad
author_sort Antonia Georgopoulou
collection DOAJ
description Abstract Electrically conductive hydrogels can simulate the sensory capabilities of natural skin, such that they are well-suited for electronic skin. Unfortunately, currently available electronic skin cannot detect multiple stimuli in a selective manner. Inspired by the deep eutectic solvent chemistry of the frog Lithobates Sylvaticus, we introduce a double network granular organogel capable of simultaneously detecting mechanical deformation, structural damage, changes in ambient temperature, and humidity. The deep eutectic solvent chemistry adds an additional benefit: Thanks to strong hydrogen bonding, our sensor can recover 97% of the Young’s modulus after being damaged. The sensing performance and self-healing capacity are maintained within a temperature range of −20 °C to 50 °C for at least 2 weeks. We exploit the granular nature of this system to direct ink to write a cm-sized frog and e-skin wearables. We realize selective tactile perception by training recurrent neural networks to achieve sensory stimulus classification between the temperature and strain with 98% accuracy.
format Article
id doaj-art-e1d3878756be4f13ab9aedd158f8e6b7
institution DOAJ
issn 2662-4443
language English
publishDate 2025-06-01
publisher Nature Portfolio
record_format Article
series Communications Materials
spelling doaj-art-e1d3878756be4f13ab9aedd158f8e6b72025-08-20T02:40:15ZengNature PortfolioCommunications Materials2662-44432025-06-016111410.1038/s43246-025-00839-73D printing of self-healing longevous multi-sensory e-skinAntonia Georgopoulou0Sudong Lee1Benhui Dai2Francesca Bono3Josie Hughes4Esther Amstad5Soft Materials Laboratory, Institute of Materials (SMaL), École Polytechnique Fédérale de LausanneCREATE Lab, Institute of Mechanical Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de LausanneCREATE Lab, Institute of Mechanical Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de LausanneSoft Materials Laboratory, Institute of Materials (SMaL), École Polytechnique Fédérale de LausanneCREATE Lab, Institute of Mechanical Engineering, École Polytechnique Fédérale de LausanneSoft Materials Laboratory, Institute of Materials (SMaL), École Polytechnique Fédérale de LausanneAbstract Electrically conductive hydrogels can simulate the sensory capabilities of natural skin, such that they are well-suited for electronic skin. Unfortunately, currently available electronic skin cannot detect multiple stimuli in a selective manner. Inspired by the deep eutectic solvent chemistry of the frog Lithobates Sylvaticus, we introduce a double network granular organogel capable of simultaneously detecting mechanical deformation, structural damage, changes in ambient temperature, and humidity. The deep eutectic solvent chemistry adds an additional benefit: Thanks to strong hydrogen bonding, our sensor can recover 97% of the Young’s modulus after being damaged. The sensing performance and self-healing capacity are maintained within a temperature range of −20 °C to 50 °C for at least 2 weeks. We exploit the granular nature of this system to direct ink to write a cm-sized frog and e-skin wearables. We realize selective tactile perception by training recurrent neural networks to achieve sensory stimulus classification between the temperature and strain with 98% accuracy.https://doi.org/10.1038/s43246-025-00839-7
spellingShingle Antonia Georgopoulou
Sudong Lee
Benhui Dai
Francesca Bono
Josie Hughes
Esther Amstad
3D printing of self-healing longevous multi-sensory e-skin
Communications Materials
title 3D printing of self-healing longevous multi-sensory e-skin
title_full 3D printing of self-healing longevous multi-sensory e-skin
title_fullStr 3D printing of self-healing longevous multi-sensory e-skin
title_full_unstemmed 3D printing of self-healing longevous multi-sensory e-skin
title_short 3D printing of self-healing longevous multi-sensory e-skin
title_sort 3d printing of self healing longevous multi sensory e skin
url https://doi.org/10.1038/s43246-025-00839-7
work_keys_str_mv AT antoniageorgopoulou 3dprintingofselfhealinglongevousmultisensoryeskin
AT sudonglee 3dprintingofselfhealinglongevousmultisensoryeskin
AT benhuidai 3dprintingofselfhealinglongevousmultisensoryeskin
AT francescabono 3dprintingofselfhealinglongevousmultisensoryeskin
AT josiehughes 3dprintingofselfhealinglongevousmultisensoryeskin
AT estheramstad 3dprintingofselfhealinglongevousmultisensoryeskin