Influence of Nanosilica in PVDF Thin Films for Sensing Applications

Technology advancements in piezoelectric materials have significantly impacted the design of wearable and flexible electromechanical sensors. Although many inorganic and ceramic materials have piezoelectric effects and high piezoelectric coefficients, their characteristics, such as high hardness and low tenacity, render them unsuitable for flexible device design. Polyvinyli-dene fluoride (PVDF) and copolymers have been widely used in flexible device design because of their inherent flexibility, high sensitivity, high ductility, and a specific piezoelectric coefficient. The effects of nanosilica on the piezoelectric behavior of PVDF are investigated in this paper. The piezoelectric characteristics of PVDF nanocomposites could be greatly improved by including nanosilica into the material.