A facile electrode pattern for voltage and current superposition of near-field electrospun piezoelectric nanogenerator

Harvesting energy from human motion in a routine exercise is a promising and viable approach for powering a wide range of wireless mobile electronics in our daily life. Direct-write piezoelectric polymeric nanogenerator is robust and high energy conversion efficiency such that tiny physical motions/disturbances over human operation frequencies can be stimulated and energy scavenged. Here, we demonstrate a direct-write polymeric poly(vinylidene fluoride) PVDF nanogenerator on the flexible substrate and a simple scaling-up electrode design for easy superposition of both voltage and current. The nanogenerators fabricated using arrays of PVDF nanofibers in parallel and in serial configurations which are capable of producing a peak output voltage of ~1.7 V and the current reached up to 300 nA. This achievement is two order of magnitude increases in both voltage and current output compared with conventional near-field setup for only one electrospun nanofiber. In addition, the alternating current output of the nanogenerator is rectified and demonstrates the technological feasibility for energy storage and recharging applications. This work shows a practical and versatile technique of using direct-write electrospun nanogenerators for powering mobile and wireless microelectronic devices.