An Elastically Stretchable TFT Circuit

An elastically stretchable, skin-like transistor circuit is demonstrated. The circuit is built on an elastomeric substrate patterned with stretchable gold film interconnects. Inverters were made by surface-mounting flexible amorphous-silicon thin-film transistors on the elastomeric substrate. The electrical performance of the inverters was evaluated prior to, during, and after uni-axial stretching by up to 12%. Performance in the relaxed state before and after stretching was identical. Small changes in circuit performance were seen in the stretched state. This first elastic transistor circuit demonstrates the functionality of stretchable interconnects, and the feasibility of fabricating active circuits on electronic skin.