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Flexible or stretchable heaters can generate heat despite their deformation, making them suitable for various applications such as wearable devices and human-machine interfaces. This study presents the development and characterization of a highly stretchable heater integrating vertically aligned carbon nanotubes (VACNTs) on a wrinkled elastomer substrate designed to maintain consistent heating performance under mechanical strain. Through a synergistic design considering both material and mechanical structure, the strain-insensitive heater achieves minimal temperature variation (less than 5%) across a tensile strain range of 0-350%. This stable heating performance is attributed to the entangled VACNT strands within a wrinkled structure, which facilitates continuous contact between the nanotubes even under significant strain. Additionally, the heater exhibits high durability, enduring 10,000 cycles at 200% strain, with a heating variation of less than 5%. Furthermore, practical applications of the strain-insensitive heater are demonstrated as a thermal treatment device for finger joints and as a multimodal tactile display capable of transmitting both thermal and pressure sensations. This study represents a significant advancement in the field of flexible and stretchable electronics, offering promising opportunities for wearable thermotherapy and haptic interfaces.
Bae et al. (Tue,) studied this question.