Wisconsin Alumni Research Foundation

Jun Li

Xudong Wang

Fan Yang

A flexible piezoelectric thin film, and method of manufacture, has a polyvinyl alcohol (PVA)-glycine-PVA sandwich heterostructure. The thin film is manufactured by evaporating the solvent from a glycine-PVA mixture solution. The film automatically assembles into the PVA-glycine-PVA sandwich heterostructure as it is salted out. Strong hydrogen bonding between the oxygen atoms in glycine and hydroxyl groups on PVA chains are responsible for the nucleation and growth of the piezoelectric γ-glycine and alignment of the domain orientation.

Wafer-scale piezoelectric bio-organic thin films

An in-situ poled ferroelectric prints with true 3D geometry is provided with an intercalated electrode design where soft polymer matrixes are selected for the ferroelectric layers, and rigid polymer matrixes are selected for the electrode layers, thus mimicking nacre architecture with a ceramic-like piezoelectric property and bone-like fracture toughness. Lithium-doped potassium sodium niobite (Li—KNN) microparticles may be used to produce ferroelectric properties and to create strong interfacial bonding with the interfacing electrode layers. Polylactic acid (PLA) in the electrode layers may be used to facilitate strong interfacial bonding with the Li—KNN microparticles.

3D-printed ferroelectric metamaterial with giant piezoelectricity and biomimetic mechanical toughness

An energy harvesting system for use with the human body may use an eccentrically mounted weight winding a mainspring that drives a mechanical clock mechanism. The mechanical clock mechanism in turn may produce pulses of electricity, for example, through periodic flexing of a piezoelectric or triboelectric material during the regular motion of the mechanical timing mechanism. By remaining in a mechanical rather than electrical domain, improved simplicity and efficiency may be obtained in the generation of regularly spaced uniform pulses.

Electrical pulse generator harvesting body movement energy

A piezoelectric artificial artery can be 3D printed to provide the real-time precise sensing of blood pressure and vessel motion patterns enabling early detection of partial occlusions. An electric-field assisted 3D printing method allows for rapid printing and simultaneously poled complex ferroelectric structures with high fidelity and good piezoelectric performance. The print material consists of ferroelectric potassium sodium niobate (KNN) particles embedded within a ferroelectric polyvinylidene fluoride (PVDF) polymer matrix.

Growing community of inventors

Madison, WI, United States of America

Jun Li