Stretchable and Washable Electroluminescent Display Screen-Printed on Textile

Nanomaterials (Basel). 2019 Sep 7;9(9):1276. doi: 10.3390/nano9091276.

Abstract

Stretchable polymer composites are a new group of materials with a wide range of application possibilities in wearable electronics. The purpose of this study was to fabricate stretchable electroluminescent (EL) structures using developed polymer compositions, based on multiple different nanomaterials: luminophore nanopowders, dielectric, carbon nanotubes, and conductive platelets. The multi-layered EL structures have been printed directly on textiles using screen printing technology. During research, the appropriate rheological properties of the developed composite pastes, and their suitability for printed electronics, have been confirmed. The structure that has been created from the developed materials has been tested in terms of its mechanical strength and resistance to washing or ironing.

Keywords: printed electronics; screen-printing; stretchable polymer composite; wearable electronics.