Highly transparent and flexible triboelectric nanogenerators: performance improvements and fundamental mechanisms

Transparent, flexible and highly efficient power sources are essential components of mobile electronics and optoelectronic devices. Here, based on the first generation of the transparent triboelectric nanogenerator (TENG), we demonstrate a simple and innovative design that can simultaneously improve the output performance and transmittance of the TENG. The improved TENG gives a maximum output up to 200 V and 7 μA at a current density of ∼0.78 μA cm−2. The TENG shows a high transmittance of ∼78%. To deeply understand the nature of the triboelectric effect, we investigated the influence of the UV–ozone treatment, surface properties, and surrounding environment on the output performance. Integrating the characterization results, we conclude that the tribocharge generation of the PDMS surface is probably due to the bond breaking of Si–O–Si groups, and is closely related to the surface properties and surrounding environment.