Advanced Bias-Free Energy Harvesting Based on High-Dielectric Flexible Electrodes With Reverse Electrowetting-on-Dielectric

A unique method for capturing energy from mechanical electrolyte modulation is known as reverse electrowetting-on-dielectric (REWOD). Prior REWOD studies relied on rigid electrodes which demand a high bias voltage to maximize harvested power, hindering the advancement of self-powered wearable health-monitoring sensors. In addition, the amount of energy harvested via the REWOD technique can be improved to a greater extent with the utilization of a high-dielectric (high-k) metal oxide (HDMO) layer on flexible electrodes. In this study, two distinct sets of electrodes that are flexible are utilized for harvesting energy with the REWOD phenomenon. The samples were coated with HDMO layers, namely, hafnium oxide (HfO2) and manganese dioxide (MnO2), respectively. The material deposition on a polyimide sheet is employed via a sputtering-based physical vapor deposition (PVD). The utilization of MnO2 samples with the proposed flexing REWOD test measurement generated <tex-math notation="LaTeX">476.21 \, μ W/cm^2 </tex-math> an utmost power density value with an encapsulated electrolyte between electrodes.